VIII. The great tribulation (Matthew 24:20-26, Mark
13:18-23, Luke 21:21-24)
Matthew 24:20-28
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Mark 13:18-23
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Luke 21:24
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But pray ye that your
flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the
beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened,
there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened. Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo,
here [is] Christ, or there; believe [it] not.
For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall
shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if [it were] possible, they
shall deceive the very elect. Behold,
I have told you before. Wherefore if
they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold,
[he is] in the secret chambers; believe [it] not. For as the lightning cometh out of the
east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of
man be. For wheresoever the carcase
is, there will the eagles be gathered together.
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And pray ye that your
flight be not in the winter. For [in] those days shall be affliction,
such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto
this time, neither shall be.
And except that the Lord had
shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect's
sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days. And then if any man shall say to you, Lo,
here [is] Christ; or, lo, [he is] there; believe [him] not: For false Christs
and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce,
if [it were] possible, even the elect.
But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things.
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And they shall fall by the
edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and
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a.
Daniel
12:1 – And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great
prince which standeth for the children of thy People: and there shall
be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even
to that same time: and at that time thy
People shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the
book
§
We can see a
clear tie-in between what Daniel speaks of and what Jesus speaks of concerning
the tribulation.
§
Therefore we can
fix the time of when this occurs to the time when Michael shall stand up.
§
Daniel says “thy
People shall be delivered” but is this a rapture event or something else.
o
Jesus is speaking
to the disciples in these passages from the gospels. He is giving commands and instructions to the
disciples who are standing in the place of the body of Christ.
o
If the body of
Christ is not present on the earth at this time why is Jesus saying things
like: “…I have told you before…”, “…If they shall say unto you…”, “…believe it
not…”, “…go not forth…”?
o
These
instructions are indications that He is speaking to a literal presence of believers
on earth during this tribulation.
o
We also see that
the “tares” are still very present so in order to be consistent with the
parable of the sower, the idea of a rapture could not have occurred.
b.
Shortened days
(Matthew 24:22, Mark 13:20)
§
Deuteronomy
17:18-20 - And it shall be,
when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy
of this law in a book out of [that which is] before the priests the Levites:
And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life:
that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law
and these statutes, to do them: That his heart be not lifted up above his
brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, [to] the right hand,
or [to] the left: to the end that he
may prolong [his] days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the
midst of Israel.
o
The lawless one
will not “…keep all the words of this law…” therefore his days will not be
prolonged in his kingdom, the reign of anti-Christ will be a very short reign
§
Proverbs
10:27-32 - The fear of the
LORD prolongeth days: but the years of
the wicked shall be shortened.
The hope of the righteous [shall be] gladness: but the expectation of
the wicked shall perish. The way of the
LORD [is] strength to the upright: but destruction [shall be] to the workers of
iniquity. The righteous shall never be removed: but the wicked shall
not inhabit the earth. The mouth of the
just bringeth forth wisdom: but the froward tongue shall be cut out. The lips of the righteous know what is
acceptable: but the mouth of the wicked [speaketh] frowardness.
o
How could the
righteous be raptured if they “shall never be removed”?
c.
False messiahs
abound (Matthew 24:24, Mark 13:6, 21-22)
§
ψευδόχριστος pseudochristos, masculine noun - one who
falsely lays claim to the name and office of the Messiah
§
ψευδοπροφήτης pseudoprophētēs, masculine noun - one
who, acting the part of a divinely inspired prophet, utters falsehoods under
the name of divine prophecies
IX.
Post tribulation, Sixth Seal (Matthew 24:29-31, Mark
13:24-25, Luke 21:25-26)
Matthew 24:29
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Mark 13:24-25
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Luke 21:25-26
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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:
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But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun
shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, And the stars of
heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.
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And there shall be signs in
the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of
nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men's hearts failing
them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the
earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
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a.
These passages
align with the 3rd, 4th and 5th trumps of the
book revelation:
§
Revelation
8:10 - And the third angel sounded, and there
fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the
third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;
§
Revelation
8:12 - And the fourth angel sounded, and the
third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as
the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third
part of it, and the night likewise.
o
Revelation
12:4 - And his tail drew the third part of the stars of
heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman
which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was
born.
o
Ezekiel
5:12 - A third part of thee
shall die with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumed in the
midst of thee: and a third part shall fall by the sword round about thee; and I
will scatter a third part into all the winds, and I will draw out a sword after
them.
§
Revelation
9:1 - And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a
star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the
bottomless pit.
o
Revelation
9:2-6 -And he opened the
bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great
furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the
pit. And there came out of the smoke locusts
upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth
have power. And 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 in their foreheads. And to them it was given that they should not
kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment
[was] as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man. And in those days shall men seek death, and
shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.
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So the 5th
trump occurs just after to the 6th seal, because that is when the
servants of God are sealed.
-
Revelation
7:4 -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.
-
144,000 are to be
sealed representing the 12 tribes of Israel (occurs after the 6th
seal is opened)
b.
Revelation
12:7-8 – And there was a war
in heaven: Michael and his angels
fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and
prevailed not, neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out that old
serpent, called the Devil and Satan, which deceiveth
the whole world: he was cast out into the earth and his angels were
cast out with him.
§
The stars
mentioned in Matthew 24:29 and Mark 13:25 are obvious allusions to angels. Stars are giant balls of gas in outer space
and cannot fall (under the present universal laws of physics)
§
According to the
gospel record of this event we can see that it occurs subsequent to the
tribulation
§
Satan is not
physically present on the earth until “immediately after the tribulation”
c.
These passages
also appear to align with the 6th seal of the book of revelation:
§
Revelation
6:12 – 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.
§
Revelation
6:13 – And the stars of
heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when
she is shaken of a mighty wind.
§
Revelation
6:14 – And the heaven
departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island
were moved out of their places.
d.
Sun darkened and
the moon shall not give her light, stars shall fall (Matthew 24:29) in the Day
of the Lord
§
Isaiah
5:30 – And in that day they
shall roar against them like the roaring of the sea: and if [one] look unto the
land, behold darkness [and] sorrow,
and the light is darkened in the heavens thereof.
§
Jeremiah 4:27 -28 – For
thus hath the LORD said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make
a full end. For this shall the earth
mourn, and the heavens above be black:
because I have spoken [it], I have purposed [it], and will not repent, neither
will I turn back from it.
§
Ezekiel
32:7-10 – And when I shall
put thee out, I will cover the heaven,
and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the
moon shall not give her light. All the
bright lights of heaven will I make dark over thee, and set darkness upon thy
land, saith the Lord GOD. I will
also vex the hearts of many people, when I shall bring thy destruction among
the nations, into the countries which thou hast not known. Yea, I will make many people amazed at thee,
and their kings shall be horribly afraid for thee, when I shall brandish my sword
before them; and they shall tremble at [every] moment, every man for his own
life, in the day of thy fall.
o
Who is the sword
but the Word of God, the Son of God. God
will brandish His sword after he darkens the sun, moon and stars.
§
Joel 2:10
– The earth shall quake
before them; the heavens shall tremble: the
sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:
§
Joel
2:30-32 – And I will shew wonders
in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The
sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the
great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
And it shall come to pass, [that] whosoever shall call on the name of
the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall
be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall
call.
o
Acts 2:20 -21 -
The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that
great and notable day of the Lord come: And it shall come to pass, [that]
whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.
§
Joel
3:14-16 – Multitudes,
multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD [is] near in the
valley of decision. The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw
their shining. The LORD also
shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and
the earth shall shake: but the LORD [will be] the hope of his people, and
the strength of the children of Israel.
o
The valley of
decision – what side are you going to choose?
§
Amos 5:20 – [Shall] not the day of the LORD [be] darkness, and not light? even
very dark, and no brightness in it?
§
Zephaniah 1:14 -16 - The
great day of the LORD [is] near, [it is] near, and hasteth greatly, [even] the
voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. That day [is] a day of wrath, a day of
trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, A day of the trumpet and alarm
against the fenced cities, and against the high towers.
o
Yom Teruah – The
Day of Blowing (Feast of Trumps)
o
The seventh
trumpet?
e.
Powers of the
heavens shaken (Matthew 24:29, Luke 21:26)
§
Isaiah
13:6-13 – Howl ye; for the
day of the LORD [is] at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the
Almighty. Therefore shall all hands be
faint, and every man's heart shall melt: And they shall be afraid: pangs and
sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman that
travaileth: they shall be amazed one at another; their faces [shall be as]
flames. Behold, the day of the LORD
cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he
shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it. For the
stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the
sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her
light to shine. And I will
punish the world for [their] evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I
will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the
haughtiness of the terrible. I will make
a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of
Ophir. Therefore I will shake the
heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD
of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.
f.
Sixth Trump
§
Revelation
9:13-16 - And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard
a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, Saying to
the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose
the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates. And the four angels were loosed, which were
prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third
part of men. And the number of the army
of the horsemen [were] two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of
them.
o
4 angels bound, 4
measures of time 1) hour 2) day 3) month 4) year
o
Jude 1:6 - And the angels which kept not their first estate, but
left their own habitation, he hath reserved
in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.
o
Could the
bottomless pit of Revelation 9:1 be under the great river Euphrates ?
g.
Day of Atonement
and the 144,000 of Revelation 7 (still in the 6th Seal)
§
Yom Kippur or the
Day of Atonement will be day that Israel calls upon Messiah
§
Revelation
7:1-10 - And after these
things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the
four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the
sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God:
and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt
the earth and the sea, 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. Of the tribe of Juda
were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand. Of the
tribe of Aser were sealed twelve
thousand. Of the tribe of Nephthalim
were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of
the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve
thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar
were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of
the tribe of Benjamin were sealed
twelve thousand. After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and
kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before
the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; and cried with a
loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and
unto the Lamb.
o
So we have here
12,000 from 12 tribes of Israel being sealed with the seal of the Living God.
o
What does it mean
to be sealed?
-
1
Corinthians 15:52 -In a
moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall
sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
-
One might think
that the 144,000 being “sealed” is equivalent to when they are “changed” but if
we examine the text a little closer we can see that the “change” occurs at the last trump and the 144,000 are
sealed sometime before the 6th trump.
-
So if being
sealed does not bring about some physiological change then what does it
do? This is possibly something
pertaining to the helmet of salvation providing some protection of the mind
against deception. We see that the seal
is placed in their foreheads which is also one of the two places that the mark
of the beast is placed (the other being the right hand)
o
Noticeable
exceptions are:
-
Ephraim – but
they are part of Joseph (Manasses is listed separately)
-
Dan – Possibly
because of their idolatry, they do not reserve the right of having
representatives among the sealed
o
The Day of
Atonement, a fall feast day that fell on the tenth day of the seventh month is
a Feast day of the Lord, a Holy Convocation or a dress rehearsal of things to
come.
o
Initially on Yom
Kippur the High Priest offers a sin offering for himself, then, after he is
cleansed, he offers the sin offering for the atonement of the nation of Israel.
o
The Feast of
Tabernacles is then the atonement of the nations through Israel
o
Likewise, here we
see the sealing of the 144,000 representatives of Israel
-
Since there is no
mention of this multitude being “sealed” and that they are wearing white robes,
can we assume that these are the saints who were martyred for their faith?
-
So we have
144,000 servants of God present on the earth and multitudes in white robes
before His throne
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They are awaiting
the opening of the 7th and final seal!
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