The Great Tribulation is a period of time, most Bible students say a period of seven years, in which the world will see the greatest destruction, turmoil and death of all time. It is a period of God unleashing His wrath on the earth for all of those who have rejected Him. His ultimate purpose in the tribulation is to bring His people, Israel, back to Himself through His righteous judgment. Many Protestants believe that the Great Tribulation could begin at any time, and that it must be accomplished before the Millennial Reign of Christ. Some view these events as being completely literal in nature, and others, as completely symbolic.
The details we have concerning the tribulation are found in the Old Testament book of Daniel and the New Testament books of Matthew and Revelation. In Matthew 24:21 Jesus, when speaking of the days to come, said, “For then shall there be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world, to this time, no, nor ever shall be.”
It is a period of time that must be viewed with deep respect and reverence. For centuries God has allowed humankind to continue. In His mercy, He has allowed us two thousand years since Christ to spread the Gospel and evangelize the world for His glory. He has tolerated the sin and wickedness that is in the world; But sin must be judged because God is righteous.
God will use the Tribulation not only to judge the wicked for their sin, but also to draw the Nation of Israel to Himself once and for all. The following are the events, found in the book of Revelation, which will come to pass during the Great Tribulation:
The Tribulation is generally divided into two three-and-a-half year segments. At the beginning of the Tribulation, the Antichrist will come to power and form a peace treaty with Israel, which will allow them to rebuild their temple and observe the Old Testament law. Midway through the tribulation, however, the Bible prophesies that the Antichrist will break this treaty, and persecution will begin. All those who will not worship the “beast” or, the Antichrist, will be killed. Those who would remain true to Jesus, and refuse to conform to the Antichrist’s wicked system will become martyrs.
As part of this system, the Antichrist will force all people to receive his “mark”. The Bible says that people will receive this mark either in their hand or in their forehead. Those who do not take the mark will not be able to buy any thing in any store and will face heavy persecution.
I must stop here to say that this is not science fiction, this is the book of Revelation.
You may be wondering, “Will Christians be present when all of this is happening?” There are four theories with regard to when the rapture will occur (when Christians will be taken off of the earth). They are referred to as the Pre-tribulational, Mid-tribulational, Pre-wrath, and Post-tribulational views and they are discussed in another article.
One thing is for certain, the Bible says that during the Great Tribulation, people will be converted to Christianity. Many people will call upon Jesus to save them. He will give them special grace and strength to endure their persecution and suffering.
What is the Tribulation? Part 2