Great Tribulation by Rich Deem

Pasting post on Tribulation from  Rich Deem's Evidence for God in order to analyse and comment.



At first glance, this is a top rating post on tribulation. Prooving his point with summary of Bible verses and Greek terms.

Will Christians Go Through the Great Tribulation?
by Rich Deem

Introduction

 Before this century, the predominant interpretation of end-times events included a post tribulation rapture (removal of Christians from the Earth) of Christ's church.

This interpretation has become unpopular recently, and replaced with a pre-tribulation rapture interpretation,

which includes at least two "second comings" of Jesus

- one to rapture believers before the Great Tribulation,

and a second to defeat the forces of evil and establish His millennial kingdom on Earth.

However, if this interpretation is inaccurate, it can lead to a false sense of security, and a falling away by many if persecution of believers reaches unprecedented proportions before Christ's return.

In this page, we will examine what the Bible says about the rapture (the word itself is never used), great tribulation events, God's wrath, and God's judgment.

My goal is to include all relevant verses, so as not to bias the data. Once we have all the data, we will examine rapture interpretations to determine which scenario fits the data the best. If you feel that significant scriptures have been left out, send an e-mail to me and I will include them.

Tribulation vs Wrath

important to define the word "tribulation"
and how this is related to God's wrath (anger and judgment).

There are two Greek words most often used to describe tribulation events

often used together in the same verse.

The first word is diwgmos (Strong's #G1375), which occurs 10 times in the New Testamen
and is translated "persecution(s)" in all major English translations.

This word always refers to the persecution of believers by non-believers.¹

Ordet diwgmos förekommer 10 gånger i NT och översätts alltid med Förföljelse som drabbar de Troende genom de otroende.

The second word is thlipsis (Strong's #G2347), which occurs 45 times in the New Testament
and is translated "tribulation(s)," "affliction(s)," "anguish," "distress," "persecution," or "trouble."

In 42 of these 45 occurrences, the word refers to the suffering believers received at the hands of non-believers.²

Återigen: Det lidande som de otroende vållar de Troende. 42 av 45.

On this basis alone, one would seem to be on shaky ground
 in assuming that the tribulation is reserved only for non-believers
(since it only refers to non-believers in only 2% of all verses).

Bara på basis av detta så står man på skakig grund när man påstgår att Vedermödan endast  drabbar de otroende. Eftersom ordet endast referrerar till otroende i 2 procent av fallen.

One of the other 3 refer to the sufferings of Joseph when he was sold into slavery by his brothers,³
 another to the sufferings of people during the famine of that time,⁴
 and only one refers to the suffering of those who commit evil.⁵


 De två grekiska orden som används att beskriva hur Guds hand drabbar de otroende.

The first word is thumos (Strong's #G2372), which occurs in 18 verses in the New Testament

and is translated "angry tempers," "fierce," "indignation," "outbursts of anger," "passion," "rage," and "wrath."


Ordet thymos finns i 18 verser i NT. Hälften av dessa (9 verser) avser Guds vrede och dom över de orättfärdiga.

 (the other 9 refer to the anger of people against each other⁷). De övriga nio verserna avser människors inbördes vrede mot varandra.



The second word is orgay (Strong's #G3709), which occurs in 34 verses in the New Testament

and is translated "anger" or "wrath."

Twenty-eight of those verses refer to the wrath of God (or Jesus) against the unrighteous,⁸

Andra ordet, orgé, förekommer i 34 verser i NT: 28 verser av dessa talar om Guds / Jesu vrede mot de orättfärdiga,
1 till förföljelse som drabbar troende,
5 människors inbördes vrede

Så: medan tribulation (vedermöda) thlipsis, så gott som alltid avser hur de troende blir förföljda,
så avser vrede (thymos, orgé) nästan alltid Guds vrede över de orättfärdiga, vilken resulterar i straff.

Therefore, whereas tribulation almost always refers to the persecution of believers,

wrath almost always refers to the anger of God against the unrighteous

that results in punishment.

Events Preceding the End

Three of the four gospels tell of Jesus' description of the end time events. In addition, the book of Revelation describes these events in some detail (although not completely in a sequential order).

 I Mattheus, Marcus, Lukas berättar Jesus om den sista tiden. Därtill kommer Johannes Uppenbarelse som mer detaljerat beskriver eskatologin, men inte helt och håller i händelseföljd.

The complete text of each description is given in the references. The major events of these end times prophecies are included in the table below. The verse citations are color-coded and letter-labeled to indicate parallel passages in each account.

I tabellen uppradas profetiorna för ändetiden med färgkodade paralleller.

Event	Matthew11	Mark12	Luke13	Revelation14
False Christsa	24:5, 23-26	13:6, 21-23	21:8
Wars, famine, earthquakesb	24:6-7	13:7-8	21:9-11	6:2-8, 12
Great Tribulation of believersc	24:9-10, 21-22	13:9-20	21:12	6:9-11
Gospel preached to all nationsd	24:14	13:10		14:6
Astronomical signse	24:29	13:24-25	21:25	6:12, 8:12
Return of Christf	24:30	13:26	21:27	1:7
Rapture of believersg	24:31	13:27	17:34-36	7:9-14

The Rapture - Upprycket

God promises to remove believers from the Earth prior to the time that He executes judgment against the unrighteous.

The removal of believers prior to God's judgment has been called the rapture.

The English word "rapture" comes from the Vulgate's Latin translation of 1 Thessalonians 4:17, in which the verb rapio is used to describe "taking away by force."

Descriptions of the return of Christ and the rapture are found in three of the four gospels, the book of Acts,¹⁵ 1 Thessalonians,¹⁶ and the book of Revelation.

It is mentioned in many other letters to the churches, but no significant additional information is included.

The descriptions given in the gospels are sequential, since many verses indicate a sense of order:

• Matthew 24:6 - "...but that is not yet the end"
• Matthew 24:8 - "But all these things are merely the beginning..."
• Matthew 24:14 - "And this gospel ... shall be preached in the whole world..., and then the end shall come"
• Matthew 24:29 - "But immediately after the tribulation of those days..."
• Matthew 24:30 - "and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky..."

Parallel passages in the other gospel indicate similar references to sequential events. The order of events clearly indicates that believers will go through the Great Tribulation.

In addition, the text indicates that the days of tribulation (persecution of believers by non-believers) will be shortened by the Lord "for the sake of the elect" (i.e., believers).

The Lord will announce His coming through astronomical signs and quickly gather together "His elect" (the rapture). Following these events, the wrath of God will be executed against the remaining non-believers.

The book of Revelation likewise indicates that believers will go through the great tribulation.

In chapter 6, believers killed for their faith ask how long it will be before God avenges their death.

The answer is that they have to wait even until more believers are killed for their faith.

Not only will believers be persecuted for their faith, but they will be killed because they are Christians (Revelation 6:11).

This tribulation will be followed by astronomical signs and the "sealing" of 144,000 Jewish men who will be future Christian evangelists.

Immediately after these men are "sealed", "a great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues" suddenly appear in heaven (from the rapture).

One of the elders asks who all these people are, and answers that they are those "who come out of the great tribulation" (Revelation 7:14). I

mmediately after the rapture, the seventh seal is broken, and there is silence in heaven for 30 minutes before the wrath of God is poured out on the Earth.

Conclusion

From these studies, one can see that there is a significant difference

between the wrath of God (which is judgment directed at the unrighteous)

and the great tribulation (which is the persecution directed at believers).

Throughout the Bible, God is consistent in His treatment of humans. He allows individuals to choose between love and hate, and rarely interferes with that choice.

At the times of the end, God will allow the unrighteous to persecute believers to an extent

that "has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever shall,"

before ending their reign of terror.

God then removes believers from the earth before executing judgment on the unrighteous.

A complete description of this judgment can be found in the remainder of the book of Revelation (chapters 8-19). The ultimate fate of unbelievers can be found in chapter 20 of Revelation.¹⁷

My concerns for the Church

Having done this study, I am more convinced than ever that Christians will go through the Great Tribulation.

Since much of the Church believes God will deliver them prior to the Great Tribulation, many believers will be surprised when they find themselves being persecuted and killed for their faith.

Their faith will be severely tested, since they may believe that God has abandoned them and that the prophecies of the rapture are not true.

Under such circumstances, most believers will fall away and deny their faith to save their lives. Jesus, in fact, made just such a prophecy:

"And at that time many will fall away and will deliver up one another and hate one another.... "But the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved. (Matthew 24:10, 13)

If you are a Christian, be prepared to die for your faith. Even your fellow "brothers" will deliver you to the authorities to avoid their own deaths. If you are not willing to die for what you believe, you will deny your faith when threatened with death. Be aware of what Jesus said about those who seek to save their lives:

For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. (Matthew 16:25)

Many Christians are looking forward to the return of Christ, which will, indeed, be a glorious event. However, the time just preceding the end will not be pleasant for Christians. The watchful Christian should be prepared to join his fellow brothers under the alter of souls of those who will die "because of the testimony which they had maintained."