A STUDY OF THE DAY OF THE LORD

Let’s compare an Old Testament passage with a New Testament passage to learn more regarding the day of the Lord. Read the passages and then answer the questions. (The teacher in me is coming out again!)

Zephaniah 1:14-18

“Near is the great day of the LORD, near and coming very quickly; listen, the day of the LORD! In it the warrior cries out bitterly. A day of wrath is that day, a day of trouble and distress, a day of destruction and desolation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness. A day of trumpet and battle cry, against the fortified cities and the high corner towers. And I will bring distress on men, so that they will walk like the blind, because they have sinned against the LORD: and their blood will be poured out like dust, and their flesh like dung. Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them on the day of the LORD’s wrath; and all the earth will be devoured in the fire of His jealousy, for He will make a complete end, indeed a terrifying one, of all the inhabitants of the earth.”

1) With what speed will the day of the Lord come? (quickly)

2) The day of the Lord will be a day of what? (wrath, trouble, distress, destruction…)

3) What will God bring upon men? (distress)

4) Why will God bring this upon men? (because they sinned against the Lord)

5) What kind of end will come to the inhabitants of the earth? (a terrifying one)

1 Thessalonians 4:16-5:6

“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words. Now as to the times and epochs, brethren, you have no need of anything to be written to you. For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night. While they are saying, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day should overtake you like a thief; for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness; so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober. For those who sleep do their sleeping at night, and those who get drunk get drunk at night. But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation. For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

1) Just after discussing the rapture, to what event then does Paul refer? (The day of the Lord. See the first question in my post below this one, “Is Matthew 24 a Rapture Passage?” Are you seeing a pattern?!)

2) What did the Thessalonian church know full well? (the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night)

3) What comes suddenly upon those who are enjoying peace and safety? (sudden destruction)

4) To what does Paul tie this sudden destruction? (the day of the Lord...Doesn't that sound familiar with what the prophet Zephaniah said?!)

5) Will the day of the Lord overtake believers? (NO!)

6) For what are believers not destined? (wrath)

Let’s tie this all together and we’ll also use the passages in the post just below this one, “Is Matthew 24 a Rapture Passage?”

We saw that Paul tied the event of the day of the Lord with the Lord’s coming and our gathering. The day of the Lord will be a day of wrath against sinners and it will arrive with sudden destruction. It will come at a time when unbelievers are enjoying peace and safety. It will not overtake believers however.

There is a sign in the sky associated with the day of the Lord. The sun will go dark and the moon will turn to blood. This occurs immediately after the great tribulation according to Jesus own teaching in Matthew 24. He instructs that when that sign occurs, He will come and gather the elect. A careful read of Matthew 24 will tell you that the great tribulation begins after the abomination of desolation occurs and it will be cut short for the sake of the elect. According to Daniel 9:27, the abomination of desolation occurs at the midpoint of Daniel’s 70th Week. Therefore, the great tribulation will begin at the midpoint of Daniel’s 70th Week. If the great tribulation is cut short for the sake of the elect, it will not run the entire second half of the Week. What do you think then remains for the rest of the latter half of Daniel’s 70th Week? God’s day of the Lord wrath for which believers, the church, is not destined!

Here’s another question for you. Are those in the church, the true believers, enjoying peace and safety during the great tribulation? NO! Who are? Those who have aligned with Antichrist, correct? They have taken his mark and can buy and sell. They can eat, drink, and be merry, and marry! But the day of the Lord, sudden destruction, will come upon them suddenly. Since God has not destined believers for wrath, the day of the Lord is a day of deliverance for those in the church. When believers see the sun and the moon darkened, according to Luke 21:28, we are to look up, for our redemption is near. The Lord’s coming and our gathering is imminent at that point. The day of the Lord will not overtake us. We will be gathered into His arms, rejoined with our loved ones who have died in the Lord, and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

And we are to comfort one another with these words!