​https://youtu.be/VfhytVbd-XE

The Savior as revealed in the Tanakh

 I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no Savior. (Isa 43:11)


Despite the fact that the Tanakh provides the record of God's deliverance of His people, the word moshia' (a participial form of the verb yasha, to deliver or to save) does not occur with great frequency in the Scriptures (it appears nearly half of the time in the latter part of the book of Isaiah). 

In the Jewish mindset, the concept of salvation is more national (corporate) than personal (as modern Christianity tends to view it). The salvation of the individual Jew is directly bound up with the salvation of the entire people, and includes the hope of being rescued from national enemies, of the Temple's complete restoration, and of the full corporate inheritance of the covenantal blessings of Adonai. For the Jew, Hamoshia' is a this-worldly, temporal leader who would rescue corporate Israel from her enemies and make the nation great in all the earth.

The idea of a "Savior of the Jewish people," then, is bound up with the idea of national Israel and the restoration of the Kingdom of David on earth. This (among other reasons) partly explains why the Jewish people tend to reject Jesus as their Savior: from their point of view Jesus did not rescue corporate, national Israel from her enemies nor set up the kingdom of David.... 

As Christians, however, we believe that Yeshua' indeed did all of these things -- but in an "already/not-yet" sort of way. He already has effected full deliverance from the ultimate enemy of the Jewish people (i.e., sin and the devil), but He has not yet fully restored the temporal glory of the Kingdom of David and will not do so until He comes again to establish His rule in Jerusalem. Maranatha, Lord Jesus!

Moshia'.
Deliverer. One who "makes wide" or "makes sufficient." One who gives freedom from distress and the ability to pursue one's way. Often understood in a "this-worldly" manner of political deliverance, the word is also used to ultimately portray Adonai's deliverance and salvation of the Israel of God. Derived from the Hebrew verb Yasha'. Note that the Name for Jesus - Yeshua - is derived from this same root.

Note: moshia' is not etymologically connected with the word mashiach, though there is overlap in the concepts between a Savior and the Messiah.

References: Deut. 22:27; 28:29, 31; Jdg. 3:9, 15; 6:36; 12:3; 1 Sam. 10:19; 11:3; 2 Ki. 13:5; Ps. 7:11; 17:7; 18:42; Isa. 19:20; 43:11; 45:15; Zech. 8:7.


The Savior

Hamoshia'.
The Deliverer; the Savior. Though this form does not directly appear in the Tanakh, it is widespread in Jewish thinking and is prevalent in the B'rit Chadasha. 


Salvation

Yeshu'ah. [yeshuat- construct form]
Noun feminine. Salvation; Deliverance. State of being made free from distress.
References: Exo. 15:2; Ps. 119:155; Isa. 26:1; 49:8; 52:7; 59:17; 60:18; Hab. 3:8.



God of Israel the Savior

Elohei Yisrael Moshia'.
God of Israel the Savior (Isa. 45:15).



The Giver of Salvation

Hannoten Teshuah.
The Giver of Salvation (Psa. 144:10).



A note about Moses (Moshe)

Mosheh.
Moses. 

The name Moses comes from the verb masha (qal present active participle) and means "he who draws out." Although Moshe was indeed a savior-figure in the Tanakh (who "drew his people out" of Egypt) and his name perhaps involves a word play on the word moshia', the proper name is probably not directly etymologically related to the word moshia'. Indeed, Moses himself spoke of the Coming Prophet who would ultimately deliver the Jewish nation, and this is a reference to the Mashiach Jesus (Deut. 18:18-19).

What did Jeremiah mean “the time of Jacob’s trouble”? How does this unequaled time of trouble for Israel’s descendants relate to the end-time Great Tribulation?
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​Under the inspiration of God, the ancient prophet Jeremiah spoke of “the time of Jacob’s trouble” (Jeremiah 30:7).
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Many have asked what this trouble for Jacob’s descendants is and when it occurs. For an explanation showing that the descendants of Jacob are primarily the English-speaking nations and other nations of northwestern Europe in our modern world, see our articles “12 Tribes of Israel Today: Who Are They?” and another about “Who Are the United States and Britain in Prophecy?”

This prophecy of unprecedented difficulty for Jacob’s descendants will be fulfilled just before the second coming of Jesus Christ. The reason for God’s punishment is found in His instructions to their ancestors millennia ago.

The reason for God’s punishment on Jacob’s descendantsRecognizing the ancient Israelites’ hostility toward Him and His commands, God told Moses:

“Behold, you will rest with your fathers; and this people will rise and play the harlot with the gods of the foreigners of the land, where they go to be among them, and they will forsake Me and break My covenant which I have made with them.

“Then My anger shall be aroused against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide My face from them, and they shall be devoured. And many evils and troubles shall befall them, so that they will say in that day, ‘Have not these evils come upon us because our God is not among us?’

“And I will surely hide My face in that day because of all the evil which they have done, in that they have turned to other gods” (Deuteronomy 31:16-18).

Repeating what God had revealed to him, Moses told the people: “For I know that after my death you will become utterly corrupt, and turn aside from the way which I have commanded you. And evil will befall you in the latter days, because you will do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him to anger through the work of your hands” (verse 29).

Sin is the cause of Jacob’s troubleOur loving God hates sin because of its destructive effects. His laws are for our good, so when we break those laws, we bring bad consequences on ourselves and those around us. Sin causes pain and suffering and cuts us off from God.

God’s desire is for the curses we bring on ourselves to turn us back to Him in repentance. Jacob’s trouble is intended to wake-up the end-time descendants of Jacob and motivate them to repent.

Study more about the cause and effect relationship of sin and suffering in our article “Why Is Our Modern World Under Ancient Curses?”

Multiple punishments culminating in the time of Jacob’s troubleGod punished Israel in the eighth century B.C. when its citizens were taken captive by the Assyrians. Judah was punished in the sixth century B.C. at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar and the nation of Babylon.

Disobedience to God’s commandments will once again bring about the downfall of the descendants of the ancient Israelites prior to Christ’s return to earth to establish the Kingdom of God.  

While all the nations of Israel will experience the tribulation of “Jacob’s trouble,” Genesis 48:16reveals that Jacob explicitly placed his name on Ephraim and Manasseh. Hence their descendants (primarily the United States and Great Britain—along with Canada, Australia, New Zealand, etc.) will bear the brunt of this difficult time.

“Time of trouble such as never was”Daniel spoke of this latter fulfillment, saying, “At that time Michael shall stand up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, every one who is found written in the book.

“And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Daniel 12:1-2).

How Jacob’s trouble relates to the end-time Great TribulationIn addition to the troubles coming to Jacob’s descendants, Jesus also spoke of an unprecedented time of difficulty that would threaten all nations just before His return.

Describing this period of time, Jesus said, “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened” (Matthew 24:21-22).

Essentially, the time of Jacob’s trouble corresponds to the same time period called the Great Tribulation. World conditions will be worse than any time in history, and humanity will be on the brink of self-destruction.

This Great Tribulation leads up to the time called the Day of the Lord. To learn more about the dire conditions that will exist in the world just before Christ’s return, read our article “What Is the Day of the Lord?”

Deliverance from the time of Jacob’s troubleEven though Jacob’s descendants will face severe punishment in “the time of Jacob’s trouble,” they will eventually repent and be restored.Even though the descendants of Jacob—including the English-speaking peoples of today—are going to face severe punishment for their disobedience to God, He promises: “‘I will bring back from captivity My people Israel and Judah,’ says the LORD. ‘And I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it’” (Jeremiah 30:3).

Describing this time of restoration, God continues: “‘For it shall come to pass in that day,’ says the LORD of hosts, ‘that I will break his yoke from your neck, and will burst your bonds; foreigners shall no more enslave them. But they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.
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“‘Therefore do not fear, O My servant Jacob,’ says the LORD, ‘nor be dismayed, O Israel; for behold, I will save you from afar, and your seed from the land of their captivity. Jacob shall return, have rest and be quiet, and no one shall make him afraid. For I am with you,’ says the LORD, ‘to save you; though I make a full end of all nations where I have scattered you, yet I will not make a complete end of you. But I will correct you in justice, and will not let you go altogether unpunished’” (verses 8-11).

Even though Jacob’s descendants will face severe punishment in “the time of Jacob’s trouble,” they will eventually repent and be restored. For more on this, see “America in Prophecy.”

For assistance in fulfilling Christ’s command to “watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:36), 


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacob_and_Esau
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We always hear Christians say things like “I have been doing everything right. I have been fasting and praying, giving, loving my neighbor, obeying the Lord, reading Scripture daily, and walking faithfully with the Lord.
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What did I do wrong? Why has God allowed me to go through such hard times? Does He not care about me? Am I saved?” To be honest we have all felt a little something like this.
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Here is what I have learned on my walk of faith. Be on guard because when you’re asking all these questions and questioning God, Satan will try to attack. He will say, “no he doesn’t love you. Look at those unbelievers who are not going through adversity, but you say Jesus Christ died for you, and yet you are going through the worst troubles of your life.” Don’t let the devil give you fear.

Trials can lead into atheism. When your faith is small the devil can rip it out. Don’t let him put you in despair and bitterness towards God. Don’t ever forget the other times God has delivered you because He will do it again. The devil will try to say it was a coincidence, but with God there is no coincidence. Cry out to God. Block Satan off and always remember that we have victory in Christ.


Trials and tribulations

• “Trials teach us what we are; they dig up the soil, and let us see what we are made of.” – Charles Spurgeon
• “Prayer is the best armor against all trials.”
• “A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials.” 
• “Being on a spiritual path does not prevent you from facing the darkness, but it teaches you how to use the darkness as a tool to grow.”

What does the Bible say?

​Think of trials as training! God has to train His troops. Have you ever heard of any staff sergeant who got to where he was without going through tough situations? God has to prepare His children for the future.
 
I remember when I said, “why God, why this, and why that?” God told me to wait for His timing. God has delivered me in the past, but when you are going through bad times all you’re thinking about is right now. I’ve seen God use trials to build me up, answer different prayers, open doors, help others, and I’ve seen many miracles where I knew it was only God who could have done this. 

While I was worrying, the Lord gave me comfort, encouragement, motivation, and He was working behind the scenes. If as believers we’re burdened by when our brothers and sisters suffer, imagine how God feels. Always remember that He loves you and He reminds us time after time in His Word that He will never forsake us.


1. Trials help our perseverance.

James 1:12 “God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.”

Galatians 6:9 “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

Hebrews 10:35-36 “So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.”


2. I don’t know.

Sometimes we have to admit we just don’t know and instead of going crazy and trying to find out why, we must trust in the Lord that He knows best.

Isaiah 55:8-9 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Proverbs 3:5 -6 “Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.”

 
3. Sometimes we suffer because of our own mistakes. Another thing is we should never test God.

In my life I’ve suffered because I followed the wrong voice. I did my will instead of God’s will. I can’t blame God for my mistakes, but what I can say is God brought me through it and made me stronger and smarter in the process.
Hosea 4:6 “My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. “Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your children.”

Proverbs 19:2-3 “Desire without knowledge is not good– how much more will hasty feet miss the way! A person’s own folly leads to their ruin, yet their heart rages against the LORD.”

Galatians 6:5 “Assume your own responsibility.”
 

4. God is making you more humble.

2 Corinthians 12:7 “even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.”

Proverbs 18:12 “Before destruction a man’s heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor.”

1 Peter 5:6-8 “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”

 
5. God’s discipline.

Hebrews 12:5-11 “And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says, “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.” Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”

Proverbs 3:11-13 “My child, do not reject the Lord’s discipline, and don’t get angry when he corrects you. The Lord corrects those he loves, just as parents correct the child they delight in. Happy is the person who finds wisdom, the one who gets understanding.”

 
6. So you can become more dependent on the Lord.


2 Corinthians 12:9-10 Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

John 15:5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.”

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7. God wants to spend time with you, but you lost your first love. You’re doing all these things for Jesus, but you’re not spending quality quiet time with the Lord.

Revelation 2:2-5 “I know what you do, how you work hard and never give up. I know you do not put up with the false teachings of evil people. You have tested those who say they are apostles but really are not, and you found they are liars. You have patience and have suffered troubles for my name and have not given up. But I have this against you: You have left the love you had in the beginning. So remember where you were before you fell. Change your hearts and do what you did at first. If you do not change, I will come to you and will take away your lampstand from its place.”

 
8. God could be protecting you from a bigger problem that you don’t see coming.

Psalm 121:5-8 “The Lord guards you. The Lord is the shade that protects you from the sun. The sun cannot hurt you during the day, and the moon cannot hurt you at night. The Lord will protect you from all dangers; he will guard your life. The Lord will guard you as you come and go, both now and forever.”

Psalm 9:7-10 “But the Lord rules forever. He sits on his throne to judge, and he will judge the world in fairness; he will decide what is fair for the nations. The Lord defends those who suffer; he defends them in times of trouble. Those who know the Lord trust him, because he will not leave those who come to him.”
Psalm 37:5 “Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him, and he will help you.”
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9. So we can share in the sufferings of Christ.

1 Peter 4:12-16 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.

2 Corinthians 1:5-7 “For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.”

 
10. It helps us grow as believers and become more like Christ.

Romans 8:28-29 “We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love him. They are the people he called, because that was his plan. God knew them before he made the world, and he chose them to be like his Son so that Jesus would be the firstborn of many brothers and sisters.”

Philippians 1:6 “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”
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1 Corinthians 11:1 “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.”
 
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11. It helps with developing character.

Romans 5:3-6 “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.”

 
12. Trials help to build our faith in the Lord.

James 1:2-6 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds. because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”

Psalm 73:25-28 “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.”
 
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13. God’s glory: The storm will not last forever and trials are an opportunity for a testimony. It gives God so much glory when everyone knows you’re going through a tough trial and you stand strong, trusting in the Lord until He delivers you, without complaining.

Psalm 40:4-5 “Blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods. Many, LORD my God, are the wonders you have done, the things you planned for us. None can compare with you; were I to speak and tell of your deeds, they would be too many to declare.”

Psalm 71:14-17 “As for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more. My mouth will tell of your righteous deeds, of your saving acts all day long— though I know not how to relate them all. I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, Sovereign LORD; I will proclaim your righteous deeds, yours alone.”

 
14. You can help someone because you have been in that situation. Throwing around Scriptures will be hard to understand for someone who is grieving, but you can comfort them because you have been through the same thing and through the pain you trusted in God.

2 Corinthians 1:3-4 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our affliction, that we may be able to comfort them that are in any affliction, through the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.”
Galatians 6:2 “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”

 
15. Trials give us a greater reward in Heaven.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

Mark 10:28-30 “Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow you!” “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life.”
 
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16. To show us sin in our lives. We should never deceive ourselves and try to hide our sins from God, which is impossible.
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Psalm 38:1-11 “Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger or discipline me in your wrath. Your arrows have pierced me, and your hand has come down on me. Because of your wrath there is no health in my body; there is no soundness in my bones because of my sin. My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear. My wounds fester and are loathsome because of my sinful folly. I am bowed down and brought very low; all day long I go about mourning. My back is filled with searing pain; there is no health in my body. I am feeble and utterly crushed; I groan in anguish of heart. All my longings lie open before you, Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you. My heart pounds, my strength fails me; even the light has gone from my eyes. My friends and companions avoid me because of my wounds; my neighbors stay far away.”

Psalm 38:17-22 “For I am about to fall, and my pain is ever with me. I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin. Many have become my enemies without cause; those who hate me without reason are numerous. Those who repay my good with evil lodge accusations against me, though I seek only to do what is good. Lord, do not forsake me; do not be far from me, my God. Come quickly to help me, my Lord and my Savior.”
Psalm 40:12-13 “For troubles without number surround me; my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me. Be pleased to save me, LORD; come quickly, LORD, to help me.”
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17. To remind us that it is God who is always in control.

Luke 8:22-25 “One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”


18. Trials increase our knowledge and they help us learn God’s Word.

Psalm 119:71-77 “It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees. The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold. Your hands made me and formed me; give me understanding to learn your commands. May those who fear you rejoice when they see me, for I have put my hope in your word. I know, Lord, that your laws are righteous, and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me. May your unfailing love be my comfort, according to your promise to your servant. Let your compassion come to me that I may live, for your law is my delight.”
Psalm 94:11-15 “The Lord knows all human plans; he knows that they are futile. Blessed is the one you discipline, Lord, the one you teach from your law; you grant them relief from days of trouble, till a pit is dug for the wicked. For the Lord will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance. Judgment will again be founded on righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it.”

Psalm 119:64-68 “The earth, O Lord, is full of thy steadfast love; teach me thy statutes! Thou hast dealt well with thy servant, O Lord, according to thy word. Teach me good judgment and knowledge, for I believe in thy commandments. Before I was afflicted I went astray; but now I keep thy word. Thou art good and doest good; teach me thy statutes.”
 
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19. Trials teach us to be more thankful.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “Always be joyful. Always keep on praying. No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.”
Ephesians 5:20 “Giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Colossians 4:2 “Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart.”
 
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20. Trials take our minds off of things of the world and put them back on the Lord.

Colossians 3:1-4 “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”

Romans 12:1-2 “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
 
Stop saying, “I’m going to pray” and actually do it. Let this be a start to a new prayer life you never had. Stop thinking you can do things on your own and trust in God. Tell God “I can’t do it without you. I need you my Lord.” Come to Him with all your heart. “God help me; I will not let you go. I will not listen to these lies.” You must stand strong and have faith God can bring you through it even if it seems impossible.
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1 Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”
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​https://youtu.be/9Nqo9mH8c78

One of the most fascinating and significant prophecies recorded in the bible is Daniel’s seventy weeks vision. The Jews had been in exile and Daniel understood from Jeremiah’s prophecy that God would bring them back to the Promised Land after seventy years. As Daniel was deep in prayer, the angel, Gabriel, appeared to him. God had sent Gabriel to give Daniel understanding concerning Israel’s destiny beyond those seventy years in exile. It concerned Israel’s future until the end.

Essentially, God has decreed 70 weeks of years, meaning 490 years (70 times 7) for Israel and the city of Jerusalem before the end will come. Bear in mind that these are lunar years (360 days a year) and not solar years (365.25 days a year), which we are more accustomed to. During these 70 weeks of years, God will deal with Israel’s sin and rebellion against His covenant, and He will turn the nation back to Him. At the same time, all the prophecies pertaining to Israel and the present world will be completely fulfilled.


At the Beginning & End of the First 69 Weeks

Daniel 9:25-26 (NASB) - "So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of distress.26 "Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined.

The countdown would begin on the day when the decree to rebuild the broken walls of Jerusalem was issued. This event happened 93 years later after Daniel was given the vision. A Persian king, Artaxerxes Longimanus, issued the decree for the Jews to rebuild the broken walls and their beloved city. Based on the date given in Nehemiah 2:1 (the month of Nisan on the twentieth year of Artaxerxes’ reign and assuming it falls on the first day of Nisan in the Jewish calendar),the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, United Kingdom, computed the date to be 14 March 445 B.C.

According to the prophecy, the 70 weeks of years are divided into 3 periods of 7 weeks, 62 weeks and the final 1 week.

At the end of 7 and 62 weeks, which is essentially 69 weeks, “the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing.” 69 weeks of years equal to 483 years(69 x 7) or 173,880 days (69 x 7 x 360). Using 14 March 445 B.C. as the start date, the date for the end of the 69 weeks of years works out to be 6 April A.D. 32.

Fascinatingly, this was the day when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey and presented Himself to the Jews as their Messiah. However, the political and religious Jewish leaders rejected Jesus as the prophecy has indicated -- “the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing.” They executed Him on a cross. They cut Him down and cut Him off.

Barely 40 years later, “the people of the prince who is to come,” that is, the Roman armies under the command of Titus Vespasianus destroyed the temple and Jerusalem. The formidable Roman military force literally came in like a flood. As Jesus had also prophesied, “not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down” (Matthew 24:2). During the next few decades, the Romans continued to put down guerrilla attempts by small Jewish rebel groups until they banished all the Jews from the land.


The Church Age

After 69 weeks of years, the prophetic clock for Israel stopped ticking. The final one week of Daniel’s 70 weeks was suspended indefinitely. In a sense and prophetically speaking, Israel disappeared from the scene and the church emerged and took centre-stage since then until today. This period is known as the church age. It is also known as the time of the Gentiles. We are living in the church age.

The church is a mystery (Ephesians 5:32). The entity of the church was unknown to the Old Testament saints. No rabbis or scholars anticipated the emergence of the church. 


The Final One Week

Daniel 9:27 (NASB) - "And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate."

The church age straddles between verse 26 and verse 27. It will come to an end when God decides to rapture the church. On that day, our Lord Jesus will appear in the sky. There will be an element of surprise to it. it will be sudden and unexpected. Suddenly all the faithful Christians will be snatched up by Jesus and caught up to be with Him, and then brought to heaven (I Corinthians 15:51-53; 1 Thessalonians 4;15-17).

When this happens, the last one week (7 years) of Daniel’s 70 weeks of years will kick in. The prophetic clock for Israel, which has stopped for more than 2,000 years, will start ticking again. This is the 7-year tribulation period, which we read in the book of Revelation when God unleashes His wrath and judgement on the inhabitants of the earth.

God will finish His dealing with Israel in this last 7 years and then the end will come. It will be a terrible time of severe judgement for Israel. There will be wars and catastrophic disasters in Israel. This is the consequence of their rejection of Jesus as their Messiah some 2,000 years ago.

Besides the rapture, another political event will also mark the beginning of the final one week of Daniel’s 70 weeks prophecy. The Anti-Christ will make a covenant with Israel and her enemies guaranteeing her peace and security. However, he will break the covenant and turn against Israel at the 3.5-year mark (“in the middle of the weeks”). He will also set up something sacrilegious, described as “the abomination of desolation” by Jesus (Matthew 24:15)in the rebuilt Jewish temple.

The good news is that finally all the remnants of Israel will be saved (Zechariah 12;10, 13:8-9; Romans 11:26).

At the end of 7 years of Tribulation, Christ Jesus will return to the earth with the armies of heaven, which includes the church (Revelation 19:7-8, 14). He will fight and utterly defeat the Anti-Christ (the beast) and the kings of the earth and all their armies that are gathered to fight Him and Israel (Revelation 19:19-21).

Notice that the church is not present during the 7-year Tribulation period. It is God’s appointed time to deal with Israel and the city of Jerusalem. Meanwhile, the church, which has been raptured 7 years earlier, will return to the earth with Christ Jesus. The church will return as the Bride of Christ (Revelation 19:7-8, 14, 17-18).


God’s Sovereignty

This amazing prophecy of Daniel’s 70 weeks points to the existence as well as the sovereignty of God over human affairs. God is in absolute control over the world and everything that is happening. He has sovereignly decreed the times for both Israel and the church, and the Jews and the Gentiles. He alone determines how this present age will end. Jesus is the Lord of history and the future.

Praise be to our Lord Jesus Christ!


Pastors Leslie & Adeline Chua


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​The Battle of Armageddon is the final showdown between good and evil on earth. After the Tribulation, Jesus will return to earth as a mighty King with the armies of heaven to destroy all those who have rejected Him as Savior. The forces of evil will rally the nations against Him. There will be no bystanders—the entire earth will be involved. Jesus will defeat the Antichrist and his False Prophet quickly, but the Bible describes the battle in detail.


The LocationAfter the Tribulation is complete, Jesus will return to earth from the same place that He ascended. The "Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, from east to west, making a very large valley; half of the mountain shall move toward the north and half of it toward the south" (Zechariah 14:4).

The angels prophesied His return in the New Testament when He first ascended to heaven from the Mount of Olives. "This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.' Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet" (Acts 1:11–12).

The Mount of Olives lies just to the east of Jerusalem. Its location and historical significance have led to skirmishes between Israelis and Palestinians over the years. The site was controlled by Arab–ruled Jordan for nineteen years prior to the Six–Day War. In 1967, the Mount of Olives returned to Israeli control, setting the stage of Christ's return and final battle in Israel.

The Victor: Jesus and the Armies of HeavenJohn's description of Christ's return can be found in Revelation 19:11–16:

Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:

​KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

Nowhere else in the Bible do we find Jesus described with such might and power. In His First Coming, He was a Suffering Servant who sympathized with our weaknesses. In His Second Coming, He will be a powerful Warrior and King who will defend His people and forever destroy evil.

Jesus will not return alone. Verse 14 says, "And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses." When Christ comes back, He will have all His saints with Him. All believers in heaven who have been raptured or converted and killed during the Tribulation will ride in with Jesus, clothed in white. We will not need to fight. We will stand with our King and witness His power. Then we will rule with Him on earth for one thousand years.

The Adversaries: The Antichrist, the False Prophet, and Their Followers"I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army" (Revelation 19:19).

The Antichrist (the Beast) will unite the world during the Tribulation. All those who have taken his mark and worshiped him will join his armies to battle against the Lord. Evil will make its final stand against the Lord and all that is good. 

The SceneEvery human being will witness this final battle.

Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. (Matthew 24:30, NIV, emphasis added)

Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. (Revelation 1:7, emphasis added)

The Antichrist will fight with all the strength of Satan and his evil ones, but they will be no competition for Jesus the King.

As the battle begins, an angel will cry out to the birds in the air: "Come and gather together for the supper of the great God, that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great" (Revelation 19:17–18).

The Antichrist and his False Prophet will be captured and cast into the lake of fire. With the sword from His mouth, Jesus will kill everyone that remains. It will be the largest, bloodiest battle in history. The Victor and His armies will remain unscathed, but the birds will feast on the bloody flesh of the nations.
After the battle, Satan will be bound for a thousand years (Revelation 20:2) while Jesus reigns on earth.

The Purpose of the BattleGod could destroy evil in any way He chooses, so what's the purpose of having a bloody battle?

First, Armageddon concludes Jesus' judgment upon Israel. The Tribulation period represents a time of divine indignation against the people of Israel, the people who rejected their Messiah, the people who repeatedly failed to heed the corrective and punitive judgment of God. It is no accident that this future period is often referred to as "the time of Jacob's trouble" (Jeremiah 30:7).

Second, Armageddon marks the final judgment upon the countries that have persecuted Israel. With all the hostile nations of the world gathered together in the Battle of Armageddon, in the valley of Jehoshaphat, God will deal with them finally and decisively.

I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will enter into judgment with them there on account of My people, My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations; they have also divided up My land. (Joel 3:2)

Finally, Armageddon constitutes a formal judgment on all the nations that have rejected Him. "Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God" (Revelation 19:15).
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God's activity and warnings are often missed by people pursuing ungodly goals. Because God "is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish," the nations do not believe He will judge them one day (2 Peter 3:9). But be assured, He is storing up wrath against a day to come when each person's deeds will be judged accordingly (Romans 2:5–6). The Bible is clear—one of these days God will have had enough, and His judgment will pour down like consuming fire against wickedness in earth's final battle.
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Most people are also confused about the meaning of “the Day of the Lord.” Will it last for one day, one year, for many years or for all eternity? When will it start? When will Christ return? And what are the prophetic seals, trumpets and plagues described in the book of Revelation?

We’ll delve into finding the answers to these and other questions.
The Bible has many prophecies of the end time. Right now, it may seem that their fulfillments are proceeding at a slow pace, but the time will come when they will be happening in rapid-fire succession!

While Jesus Christ said we should stay aware of “the signs of the times,” He made it clear that we should stay focused, like Him, to “do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work” (John 4:34). As we await the second coming of Christ, instead of allowing ourselves to become distracted, we should serve God in such a way that Christ, when He returns, will say, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21).

What Does the Bible say about the Day of the Lord?This lesson is based on the foundations laid in the last five lessons. If anything in this lesson is unclear, it may help to review previous lessons in this “Bible Prophecy and You” series in recent issues of Beyond Today, especially lessons 8 to 12.

The book of Revelation gives great insight into how these subjects tie together and describes the sequence of end-time trends and events. For a good understanding of Revelation, we highly recommend that you read our free study guide The Book of Revelation Unveiled.

What does the Bible mean by “the day of the Lord”?
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“Wail, for the day of the Lord is at hand! It will come as destruction from the Almighty. Therefore all hands will be limp, every man’s heart will melt, and they will be afraid. Pangs and sorrows will take hold of them; they will be in pain as a woman in childbirth; they will be amazed at one another; their faces will be like flames.

“Behold, the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate; and He will destroy its sinners from it. For the stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be darkened in its going forth, and the moon will not cause its light to shine.
“‘I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will halt the arrogance of the proud, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible. I will make a mortal more rare than fine gold . . . Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth will move out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of hosts and in the day of His fierce anger’” (Isaiah 13:6-13).

The Day of the Lord usually refers to a time when God and Christ are powerfully intervening in the world to punish evil. This is also called “the great and dreadful day of the Lord” that will come “upon all the nations” just before Christ’s second coming (Malachi 4:5; Obadiah 1:15, emphasis added throughout). Sometimes the term is nearly synonymous with “the time of the end,” which was explained in Lesson 1.

However, occasionally it has a dual fulfillment. Isaiah 13 begins with a warning of how God will punish Babylon, which most likely refers to its destruction in Old Testament times (Isaiah 13:1-6). But verses 9-13 are obviously more specifically describing the end-time “day of the Lord,” when God will cause spectacular heavenly signs and “will punish the world for its evil.”

Furthermore, starting with the beginning of Christ’s future intervention, the Day of the Lord can in one sense be considered to last forever because God through Christ will forevermore rule the world. Never again will Satan be “the ruler of this world” (see John 12:31; John 14:30; John 16:11).

Do synonymous phrases for Day of the Lord usually show that it will be a time of awesome and dreadful punishment?

“Behold, the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate; and He will destroy its sinners from it . . . Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth will move out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of hosts and in the day of His fierce anger” (Isaiah 13:9; Isaiah 13:13).

“For it is the day of the Lord’s vengeance, the year of recompense for the cause of Zion” (Isaiah 34:8).
“Deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus” (1 Corinthians 5:5).

Clearly the Bible uses several other expressions for the Day of the Lord, including “day of His fierce anger,” “day of the Lord’s vengeance” and “day of the Lord Jesus.”

What is the relationship between the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord?

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:29-30).

“The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord” (Joel 2:31).

Jesus said the terrifying heavenly signs will occur “immediately after the [great] tribulation of those days.” And through Joel, God said these heavenly signs will occur “before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.” So chronologically speaking, the Great Tribulation comes on the world scene before the Day of the Lord (compare Revelation 6:12-17).

As we saw in Lesson 11, during the Great Tribulation enemy nations will punish, through war and captivity, the United States, Britain and other nations whose people are largely descendants of the ancient Israelites.

The Day of the Lord will be direct punishment from Jesus Christ on the rest of unrepentant humanity (Revelation 16:9), especially the nations that are a part of the political, religious and commercial “Babylon the Great” and anyone else who opposes Christ (Revelation 17:5; Revelation 18:2).

When will the Day of the Lord begin?
“To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn . . .” (Isaiah 61:2).

“For the day of vengeance is in My heart, and the year of My redeemed has come” (Isaiah 63:4).

The Bible doesn’t clearly answer when the Day of the Lord will begin. However, in Bible prophecy, the word day can sometimes represent one year (Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6).

Furthermore, other scriptures seem to indicate that the Day of the Lord will begin one year before Christ returns. For example, we read in Isaiah 34:8, “For it is the day of the Lord’s vengeance, the year of recompense for the cause of Zion.” Also, in Isaiah 61:2, “the acceptable year of the Lord” seems to be equated with “the day of vengeance of our God.”

We saw in the last lesson that the Great Tribulation will begin 3½ years before Christ returns. It appears that the last year of that period will be the Day of the Lord. So it seems that the first 2½ years display Satan’s wrath, followed by a year of God’s vengeance.

We know for sure that “the servants of our God” will be protected from the “harm” that Christ will pour out on the earth during this final period (Revelation 7:3; see also 3:10 and 12:14-17). Many scriptures assure us of God’s desire and power to protect His people.

What do the seven “seals” of Revelation represent?

“And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals” (Revelation 5:1).

The first rule of Bible interpretation is to let the Bible interpret itself. A comparison between the seven “seals” and the sequence of events Jesus foretold in the prophecy He gave on the Mount of Olives, His Olivet Prophecy, in Matthew 24:4-9 gives us a clear understanding. Here is a very brief summary of what the opening of the seals portray:

1st Seal (Revelation 6:1-2; Matthew 24:4-5): Increasing religious deception of false Christianity.
2nd Seal (Revelation 6:3-4; Matthew 24:6-7): Wars increasing in frequency and devastation.
3rd Seal (Revelation 6:5-6; Matthew 24:7): Food shortages and famines increasing.
4th Seal (Revelation 6:7-8; Matthew 24:7): Plagues such as disease epidemics and natural disasters increasing and becoming more deadly.
5th Seal (Revelation 6:9-11; Matthew 24:9): Increasing persecution of Christians climaxing in the Great Tribulation.
6th Seal (Revelation 6:12-16; Matthew 24:29): A great earthquake and terrifying heavenly signs.
7th Seal (Revelation 6:17; 8:1-2, 6; Matthew 24:30): Day of the Lord (“the great day of His wrath”), including the seven trumpet plagues.

What are the seven trumpets of the seventh seal (the Day of the Lord)?
“When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets” (Revelation 8:1-2).

The opening of the seventh seal includes seven angels blowing their trumpets one by one. After each trumpet blast, there is a cataclysmic event. The first four are described in Revelation 8:

Destruction of vegetation (Revelation 8:7).
Devastation of oceans and sea life (Revelation 8:8-9).
Devastation of rivers and fresh water (Revelation 8:10-11).
Sun, moon and stars darkened (Revelation 8:12).
The fifth trumpet “plague” is described in Revelation 9:1-12. Quoting from our study guide The Book of Revelation Unveiled: “The director or ‘king’ of this wave of affliction is described as ‘the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon’ (Revelation 9:11, NIV). These titles, in Hebrew and Greek, mean ‘destruction’ and ‘destroyer,’ respectively. And we later see that the Satan-led ‘beast’ power emerges from this abyss or bottomless pit (Revelation 17:8), showing that the locusts here are probably the forces of this Europe-centered power bloc directed by Satan.”

The sixth trumpet “plague” is described in Revelation 9:13-21. Incredibly, it describes a 200-million-man army that will “kill a third of mankind”! Apparently the army comes from nations east of the Euphrates River. Quoting again from the chapter “The Day of the Lord Finally Arrives” from the same study guide: “This event, the second woe or sixth trumpet plague, seems to be a massive counterattack against the European-led forces of the first woe or fifth trumpet plague.”

The seventh trumpet announces “seven angels having the seven last plagues, for in them the wrath of God is complete” (Revelation 15:1). Each angel has a bowl full of the wrath of God, and each bowl in turn is poured out on the earth. These seven last plagues are described in Revelation 15 and 16. The fifth angel pours “his bowl on the throne of the beast” (Revelation 16:10). The sixth angel prepares the way for the climactic battle commonly referred to as “Armageddon” (16:12-16).

What does “Armageddon” mean? What does the prophecy concerning it say?

“Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, so that the way of the kings from the east might be prepared. And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

“‘Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame.’ And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon” (Revelation 16:12-16).

Although Satan and the demons are doomed to lose any battle with Christ, they never give up trying to defeat Him. Once again, Christ will use their efforts to fulfill His purposes. The “spirits of demons” working under Satan and through the Beast and the False Prophet “go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty”(Revelation 16:13-14). That is the real name of the final battle between Christ and the armies of the world.

Jesus Christ makes use of the demonic influences “to gather the nations . . . to pour on them My indignation, all My fierce anger” (Zephaniah 3:8). All nations, including the armies of the Beast, “will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings” (Revelation 17:14).

“And they [the demons] gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon” (Revelation 16:16). Armageddon literally means “Mount Megiddo.” In fact, the Majority Text of the New Testament says simply Magedonor “Megiddo.” This is an ancient city ruin northwest of Jerusalem. To the east of it is a broad valley or plain, called Jezreel or Esdraelon, in which numerous battles have been fought in the past. One of its names is “the plain of Megiddo” (Zechariah 12:11). This will be the central gathering place, but the huge armies will evidently be spread out over a much larger area.

As Christ descends toward Jerusalem, the area around Jerusalem will become the primary area of battle. “Behold, the day of the Lord is coming . . . For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem . . . Then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations . . . And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives . . . And the Lord shall be King over all the earth” (Zechariah 14:1-4; Zechariah 14:9).

The actual battle begins when the seventh angel pours out his bowl. Then there will be an earthquake more devastating than any that people have experienced before! Islands and mountains will disappear! The “cities of the nations” will fall, including the leading city the Bible refers to as “Babylon,” a reference to the final revival of Rome, as we’ve seen in other lessons. A hailstorm will rain down hailstones that will weigh perhaps 75 to 100 pounds each (Revelation 16:17-21). The fall of Babylon is more fully described in Revelation 18.

Christ will capture the Beast and the False Prophet—the consummate antichrists described in the last lesson—and cast them into a lake of fire and will kill all the opposing armies (Revelation 19:19-21).

The prophet Zechariah records the fate of these armies that fight against Christ, apparently being hit with a blast of immense power: “And this shall be the plague with which the Lord will strike all the people who fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet, their eyes shall dissolve in their sockets, and their tongues shall dissolve in their mouths” (Zechariah 14:12).

What will be the great triumphant climax of the Day of the Lord?

“Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever’” (Revelation 11:15, English Standard Version).

“And the twenty-four elders who sat before God on their thrones fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying: “We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was and who is to come, because You have taken Your great power and reigned. The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, and those who fear Your name, small and great, and should destroy those who destroy the earth” (Revelation 11:16-18).

“Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses.

“Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: King of Kings and Lord of Lords” (Revelation 19:11-16).

“Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

“For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Corinthians 15:50-54).

“But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.

“For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will 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” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

With the seventh trumpet comes the announcement of marvelous news for the saints and for the future of the world: Jesus Christ lays claim to His rule of the earth! The 24 elders in heaven announce that it is time to “reward Your servants the prophets and the saints”!

The great climax of the Day of the Lord will be the awe-some return of Christ, so vividly described in Revelation 19, and the raising from the dead of the saints, which is “the first resurrection” (Revelation 20:6). Almost all of 1 Corinthians 15 discusses the resurrection. It tells us that the blowing of “the last trumpet” will signal the resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:52). The resurrection of the saints is also described in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 and is referred to in many other scriptures.

This seventh trumpet also announces the pouring out of the seven last plagues, as we’ve seen. These plagues, which include the gathering of the Beast and False Prophet and other forces, will follow the resurrection, with Christ and the saints then coming down to the final battle.

What annual festival commanded by God pictures the Day of the Lord?
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“Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the children of Israel, saying: “In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a sabbath-rest, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation. You shall do no customary work on it; and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord”’” (Leviticus 23:23-25).
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This passage briefly refers to the Feast of Trumpets, which foreshadows the fulfillment of the trumpets of Revelation, especially the last one marking Christ’s return and the resurrection of the saints. The Feast of Trumpets and the six other annual festivals and Holy Days commanded by God are explained in our free study guide God’s Holy Day Plan: The Promise of Hope for All Mankind.All of these occasions are joyful and deeply meaningful. Once you understand them, you will want to celebrate them!

After talking about the resurrection in 1 Thessalonians 4, the apostle Paul goes on to talk about “the day of the Lord” in 1 Thessalonians 5. He makes it clear that when this time finally comes, it will do so suddenly, so we should stay spiritually prepared. After that, Paul gives a wonderful list of simple instructions for true Christian living.

​JOHN 16 – THE DEPARTING JESUS’ FINAL TEACHING

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John 16:John 15:12-16:4 – Prepared for Persecution
John 16:5-33 – Prepared for Advantage



A. More on the work of the Holy Spirit.1. (1-4) The reason for Jesus’ warning: certain persecution.


'These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble. They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service. And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me. But these things I have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them. And these things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you.”


a. They will put you out of the synagogues: Jesus warned His disciples of coming opposition because He did not want them to be surprised and stumbled by it. He also did not expect that His disciples would immediately leave the synagogues, or leave them by their own choice. They would be forced out of the synagogues for Jesus’ sake.

i. Stumble: “A skandalethron was not a stumbling-block which might trip you up… It is used of the spring of a trap which might ‘go off’ when you were least expecting it.” (Tasker)

ii. “At the time when the Gospel was written these words had acquired a special relevance from the inclusion in the synagogue prayers of a curse on the Nazarenes, which was intended to ensure that the followers of Jesus could take no part in the service.” (Bruce)

b. The time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service: That time quickly came, as the life of Saul of Tarsus before his conversion showed (Acts 8:1-3, 22:3-5, 26:9-11). Since then there have been many who persecute and kill the true followers of Jesus because they think God is pleased.

i. Offers God service: “The word Jesus uses for service is lateria, which is the normal word for the service that a priest rendered at the altar in the Temple of God and is the standard word for religious service.” (Barclay)
ii. In the 20th Century most Christian martyrs were victims of the atheistic, communist state. Historically, this was unusual. Through most of history, most Christian martyrs were targets of those from other religions or even sects within Christendom.

c. When the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them: Jesus did well to forewarn, because it comes as a great shock that a gospel so glorious is hated so passionately. He did not tell His disciples these things at the beginning, but He certainly told them.

i. “During the earlier part of His ministry Jesus had spoken comparatively little to His disciples about the persecution which awaited them, because He had been in their company, and as long as He was with them the world’s hatred must inevitably be drawn to Himself.” (Tasker)

ii. “While He was with them they leant upon Him and could not apprehend a time of weakness and persecution.” (Dods)

2. (5-7) Jesus explains the benefits of His departure.“But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.”

a. None of you asks Me, “Where are You going”: Peter had asked this question earlier (John 13:36) and Thomas asked a similar question (John 14:5). Therefore Jesus must mean not only the words of the question, but the heart of it. Their previous asking was in the sense, what will happen to us when You leave, not in the sense Jesus meant here – what will happen to You when You leave.

i. “A difficulty is posed by His statement that nobody asks, ‘Whither goest thou?’ in the light of Simon Peter’s earlier question, ‘Lord, wither goest thou?’ (John 13:36). But that question had not really indicated a serious inquiry as to Jesus’ destination. Peter was diverted immediately and he made no real attempt to find out where Jesus was going. He had been concerned with the thought of parting with Jesus, not with that of the Master’s destination. He had in mind only the consequences for himself and his fellows.” (Morris)

b. But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart: Jesus excused their lack of interest in His fate, knowing their great sorrow. They had sorrow at the moment, but their future was brighter. The disciples could only see the sorrow of Jesus leaving; but Jesus’ departure was an essential step in their growth as disciples.

c. It is to your advantage that I go away: This had to be difficult for the disciples to believe. When a loved one is near death we often think it is the best to let death take its course. We say, “It will be better for them to go, and to stop the suffering. It is to their advantage to go away.” But when someone we love is near death, we usually don’t think that it is to our advantage that they go. Yet Jesus here said that it wasn’t for His advantage, but to your advantage that I go away.

i. If the disciples really understood what was about to happen, it would be even more difficult for them to believe.


· To your advantage that Jesus is arrested?
· To your advantage that Jesus’ ministry of teaching and miracles is stopped?
· To your advantage that Jesus is beaten?
· To your advantage that Jesus is mocked?
· To your advantage that Jesus is sentenced for execution?
· To your advantage that Jesus is nailed to a cross?
· To your advantage that Jesus dies in the company of notorious criminals?
· To your advantage that His lifeless body is laid in a cold grave?


d. Nevertheless: This word meant a challenge to their sorrow and even their unbelief. Nevertheless is one of the great words of the Bible, meaning despite all of that. Jesus knew they were filled with sorrow because of what He told them. But, despite all of that He wanted them to know that it was to their advantage.

i. “It is expedient for you, implies that the dispensation of the Spirit is a more blessed manifestation of God than was even the bodily presence of the risen Saviour.” (Alford)

e. I tell you the truth: Jesus didn’t say this because He lied most of the time. He said this because He wanted them to make a concerted effort to trust Him at this point. Jesus knew this was difficult to believe.

f. For if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you: Jesus had a plan, but they couldn’t understand it. With 2,000 years of hindsight we see that when Jesus went away He then sent the Spirit of God, which had and has a broader and more effective ministry in the entire world.

i. “The withdrawal of the bodily presence of Christ was the essential condition of His universal spiritual presence.” (Dods)

g. I will send Him to you: Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to His disciples when He departed. This is what would make it to their advantage that He departed from them. Jesus meant that the presence and work of the Holy Spirit would actually be better for believers than the physical, bodily presence of Jesus.

i. It was better because Jesus could be with every believer all the time. Jesus promised, For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them (Matthew 18:20). That was not a promise He could keep after flesh, but only after the Spirit. He had to go away for that promise to be made true. If Jesus were present bodily on this earth, there would be some Christians who would be overjoyed – those in His immediate presence. But for most Christians, they would have the overwhelming sense that Jesus was not with them. Truly, it was all to your advantage.

ii. It was better because now we can understand Jesus better. If Jesus were present bodily on this earth, there would be no end to His words for us. We wouldn’t have a Bible; we would have the library of congress. Secretaries would follow Him constantly to record His every word. It would all be written down and preserved. We would have all of it, and the mass of it would be just plain unmanageable. Truly, it was all to your advantage.

iii. It was better because now we can have a more trusting relationship with God. If Jesus were present bodily on this earth, there would be a great challenge to our walk of faith. Paul said, Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer. (2 Corinthians 5:16) God wants us to walk by faith, and not by sight, and if Jesus were here bodily, there would be great temptation to walk by sight, and not by faith. Truly, it was all to your advantage.

iv. It was better because Jesus’ work is better understood as He is enthroned in the heavens. If Jesus were present bodily on this earth, it would be confusing to us. Jesus does not continue to suffer; He finished His work on the cross. Yet it might be difficult for us to see a Savior who never suffered when we are in distress; it might make us think that Jesus was unsympathetic. God didn’t want us to struggle with this dilemma, so Jesus is no longer bodily on this earth. He is enthroned in the heavens. Truly, it was all to your advantage.

v. Before Jesus left the disciples were confused, thick headed, afraid, selfish and self-centered. After Jesus left and after the Helper had come they were wise, surrendered, bold, and giving. Truly, it was to your advantage that Jesus left.

3. (8-11) The work of the Holy Spirit in the world.“And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”

a. He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Sin is the truth about man, righteousness is the truth about God, judgment is the inevitable combination of these two truths.

i. “Each man’s conscience has some glimmering of light on each of these; some consciousness of guilt, some sense of right, some power of judgment of what is transitory and worthless; but all these are unreal and unpractical, till the convicting work of the Spirit has wrought in him.” (Alford)

b. He will convict: The ancient Greek work translated convict has a broader range of meaning than simply our word convict, especially as it is understood in a legal sense. It also carries the ideas to expose, to refute, and to convince (Bruce). This is the work of the Holy Spirit in the world and in individual hearts; to convince and convict of these truths.

i. He will convict: “Or undeceive the world, by refuting those odd conceits and erroneous opinions, that men had before drunk in, and were possessed of.” (Trapp)

ii. It is a serious thing to resist and reject this work of the Holy Spirit, which is especially prominent and powerful in seasons of great spiritual advance (sometimes called revival or spiritual awakening).

iii. Before the convicting work of the Holy Spirit one may say, I make a lot of mistakes. Nobody’s perfect. After the convicting work of the Holy Spirit one may say, I’m a lost rebel, fighting against God and His law – I must rely on Jesus to get right with God.

iv. “The Spirit does not merely accuse men of sin, he brings to them an inescapable sense of guilt so that they realize their shame and helplessness before God.” (Tenney)

v. “The Spirit is the ‘advocate’ or helper of those who believe in Jesus, their counsel for the defence. But in relation to unbelievers, to the godless world, he acts as counsel for the prosecution.” (Bruce) It’s important to have the Spirit of God to defend rather than to convict.

vi. In the great awakening of 1860-61 in Great Britain, a high-ranking army officer described the conviction of sin in his Scottish town: “Those of you who are ease have little conception of how terrifying a sight it is when the Holy Spirit is pleased to open a man’s eyes to see the real state of heart. Men who were thought to be, and who thought themselves to be good, religious people… have been led to search into the foundation upon which they were resting, and have found all rotten, that they were self-satisfied, resting on their own goodness, and not upon Christ. Many turned from open sin to lives of holiness, some weeping for joy for sins forgiven.” (J. Edwin Orr, The Second Evangelical Awakening in Britain)

c. Of sin, because they do not believe in Me: It is unbelief, the rejection of Jesus, which ultimately proves one to be guilty. The Holy Spirit will tell the world of the importance of trusting in, relying on, and clinging to Jesus to avoid this sin.

i. “The essence of sin is unbelief, which is not simply a casual incredulity nor a difference of opinion; rather, it is a total rejection of God’s messenger and message.” (Tenney)

ii. “The basic sin is the sin which puts self at the centre of things and consequently refused to believe in Him.” (Morris)
iii. “A sinner is a sacred thing: the Holy Ghost hath made him so. Your sham sinner is a horrid creature; but a man truly convinced of sin by the Spirit of God is a being to be sought after as a jewel that will adorn the crown of the Redeemer.” (Spurgeon)

d. Of righteousness, because I go to My Father: The ascension of Jesus to heaven demonstrated that He had perfectly fulfilled the Father’s will and had proven Himself righteous – and exposed the lack of righteousness in the world that rejected Him. The Holy Spirit shows the world the righteousness of Jesus and its own unrighteousness.

i. Many people today – even secular people – take the righteousness of Jesus as a given. Yet during His life Jesus was reviled as an imposter, as demon-possessed, as a wicked destroyer of the law, as a glutton, a drunk, and as illegitimate. The Holy Spirit persuades the work of the righteousness of Jesus.
ii. “Whereas righteousness had previously been defined by precepts, it now has been revealed in the incarnate Son, who exemplified it perfectly in all his relationships.” (Tenney)

e. Of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged: The judgment of Satan himself means that there will be a final reckoning between God and His rebellious creature. The Holy Spirit warns the world of this coming judgment.
i. Normally conviction is followed by judgment. When the Holy Spirit works, there is an in-between step: the revelation of the righteousness of Jesus Christ, which can satisfy the judgment for the convicted person.

ii. “The world, the prince of it, is ‘judged’. To adhere to it rather than to Christ is to cling to a doomed cause, a sinking ship.” (Dods)
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4. (12-15) The work of the Holy Spirit among the disciples.“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you.”

a. I still have many things to say to you: Jesus frankly admitted that His own teaching was incomplete, and anticipated the further instruction of the church by the Holy Spirit. This statement of Jesus leads us to anticipate the formation of the New Testament.

i. Here Jesus answered those who say, “I’ll take what Jesus taught, but not what Paul or the others taught.” Paul and the other New Testament writers taught us the many things that Jesus spoke of.

· For example, they didn’t know that some of the customs and commands among the Jews would be fulfilled by the person and work of Jesus, and no longer be binding under the New Covenant.

· For example, they didn’t know that God would bring Gentiles into the New Covenant community as equal partners, without having to first become Jews.
b. He will guide you into all truth: In one sense, this was fulfilled when the New Testament writings, divinely inspired by God, were completed. In another sense the Holy Spirit continues today to personally lead us into truth, but never in opposition to the Scripture, because God’s supremely authoritative revelation is closed with the New Testament.

i. Into all truth: “The Greek means ‘all the truth’, i.e. the specific truth about the Person of Jesus and the significance of what He said and did. The New Testament is permanent evidence that the apostles were guided into truth about this.” (Tasker)

ii. He will tell you things to come: “The promise must therefore refer to the main features of the new Christian dispensation. The Spirit would guide them in that new economy in which they would no longer have the visible example and help and counsel of their Master.” (Dods)

c. He will not speak on His own authority… He will glorify Me… He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you: The Holy Spirit’s ministry is revealing Jesus to us, to bear testimony of Jesus (John 15:26). He uses many different ways and many different gifts to accomplish this, but the purpose is always the same: to reveal Jesus.

i. One may speak of dream, visions, experiences, revelations and say they came from the Holy Spirit, but many of those supposed revelations of the Spirit say nothing or almost nothing about Jesus Himself.

ii. “This verse is decisive against all additions and pretended revelations subsequent to and besides Christ; it is being the work of the Spirit to testify and to declare the THINGS OF CHRIST; not any thing new and beyond Him.” (Alford)

iii. All things that the Father has are Mine: “If Christ had not been equal to God, could he have said this without blasphemy?” (Clarke)

B. Jesus prepares the disciples for His coming challenge on the cross.1. (16-18) Jesus tells them of His immediate, brief departure.“A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father.” Then some of His disciples said among themselves, “What is this that He says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’; and, ‘because I go to the Father’?” They said therefore, “What is this that He says, ‘A little while’? We do not know what He is saying.”

a. A little while, and you will not see Me: The disciples didn’t understand that the arrest of Jesus was only an hour or two away, and then His crucifixion would follow. Yet because He must go to the Father, they would seeHim again as He rose from the dead.

i. You will not see Me: “During the interval between His death and resurrection the disciples lost their faith and spiritual vision, and no more beheld Him than did the world.” (Trench)

ii. You will see Me: “‘And again a little while shall elapse, and then ye-shall-seeMe (ὄψεσθέμε), i.e. with bodily eyes.’ When the short interval between His death and resurrection had elapsed, then they should see Him with their bodily eyes.” (Trench)

b. We do not know what He is saying: The disciples were both troubled and confused. They probably thought Jesus spoke with unnecessary mystery about where He was going and what He would do. They didn’t understand what He meant about not seeing Him and then seeing Him.

i. We do not know what He is saying: “A different word is used here in the Greek for saith from that used in the first part of the verse. Hence, RSV, rightly, ‘we do not know what he means’.” (Tasker)

ii. “The use of the imperfect tense in ‘kept asking’ [they said] (elegon) shows that they must have held a consultation among themselves about it and that the discourse did not proceed as an uninterrupted lecture.” (Tenney)
iii. “Where for us, all is clear, for them all was mysterious. If Jesus wishes to found the Messianic kingdom, why go away? If He does not wish it, why return?” (Godet, cited in Morris)

2. (19-22) Jesus explains of coming sorrow being turned into joy.  Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, “Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’? Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy. A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.”

a. Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him: Jesus understood that the disciples wanted more clarity; but He also knew that they needed more than information. They needed their hearts and minds prepared to endure the coming crisis.

i. “Jesus, perceiving their embarrassment, and that they wished to interrogate Him, said to them: ‘Are you inquiring among yourselves?’” (Dods)
b. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy: Jesus knew they would be plunged into deep and dark sorrow in the next few hours. He also knew that God would, by His power and grace, turn their sorrow into joy.

i. The words, you will be sorrowful were certainly true.
· Sorrowful at the loss of relationship.
· Sorrowful at the humiliation of their Master and Messiah.
· Sorrowful at the seeming victory of His enemies.
· Sorrowful because all they hoped for was taken away.

ii. The crucifixion and all that went with it was not a bump in the road on the way to fulfilling God’s plan, as if it were an obstacle to overcome. It was the way the plan would be fulfilled. That sorrow would turn into joy.

iii. God’s work was not to replace their sorrow with joy, but to turn sorrow into joy, as He often does in our lives. The sorrow would be directly connected to their coming joy, even as the sorrow of a woman in childbirth is directly connected to her joy that her child has been born into the world.

iv. “It is most remarkable and instructive that the apostles do not appear in their sermons or epistles to have spoken of the death of our Lord with any kind of regret. The gospels mention their distress during the actual occurrence of the crucifixion, but after the resurrection, and especially after Pentecost, we hear of no such grief.” (Spurgeon)

c. I will see you again and your heart will rejoice: They didn’t fully understand the separation, so they could not fully understand the joy of the coming reunion. Yet when it happened, no one could deny their joy-filled testimony of the resurrection. It was testimony so sure that they endured death because of it. It was joy no one will take from you.

i. Your joy no one will take from you: “Our Lord’s meaning appears to have been this: that his resurrection should be so completely demonstrated to them, that they should never have a doubt concerning it; and consequently that their joy should be great and permanent.” (Clarke)

ii. “That he should suffer was cause for grief, but that he has now suffered all is equal cause for joy. When a champion returns from the wars bearing the scars of conflict by which he gained his honors, does anyone lament over his campaigns?” (Spurgeon)

3. (23-27) Jesus promises greater joy regarding their coming access to God after Jesus’ departure.“And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father. In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you; for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.”

a. In that day you will ask Me nothing: Jesus probably meant that they would be so overcome with joy and relief at the resurrection that they would be speechless when it came to making requests of Jesus. Yet the pathway to audience with God and answered prayer was more open, not more closed.

i. Until now you have asked nothing in My name: “Ye have not as yet considered me the great Mediatorbetween God and man; but this is one of the truths which shall be more fully revealed to you by the Holy Spirit.” (Clarke)

b. Whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you: Because of Jesus’ great work, disciples have unlimited, undeniable access to God through Him. The disciples had yet to really pray in the name of Jesus, but He would teach them.

i. “The meaning is that the atoning death of Jesus will revolutionize the whole situation. On the basis of the Son’s atoning work men will approach God and know the answers to their prayers.” (Morris)

c. But I will tell you plainly about the Father: The disciples should trust that in this time of restored joy and open access to Jesus, they would know the Father Himself, and know about Him more than ever.

i. Figurative language: “Used here to cover the cryptic expression ‘a little while’ and the metaphor of childbirth used in verse 21.” (Tasker)
d. For the Father Himself loves you: Jesus makes it clear that the Son did not need to persuade an angry Father to be gracious; but His work would provide a righteous basis for God’s graciousness.

i. “Here Jesus is saying: ‘You can go to God, because he loves you,’ and he is saying that before the Cross. He did not die to change God into love; he died to tell us that God is love. He came, not because God so hated the world, but because he so loved the world. Jesus brought to men the love of God.” (Barclay)

ii. “The reason that Christ will not intercede for them is now given. There will be no need. The Father Himselfloves them. He does not need to be persuaded to be gracious. In this case the ground of acceptance is the relationship in which they stand to Jesus.” (Morris)

e. Because you have loved Me: The Father did not love the disciples on the basis of their love for Jesus, but their love for Jesus was evidence of the Father’s love for them.

i. A pulse doesn’t make the heart pump, but it is evidence of it. Our love for God doesn’t make Him love us, but it is evidence that He loves us.

4. (28-32) The disciples proclaim their faith; Jesus places it in perspective.“I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and go to the Father.” His disciples said to Him, “See, now You are speaking plainly, and using no figure of speech! Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You. By this we believe that You came forth from God.” Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone. And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.”

a. I came forth from the Father: Jesus repeated themes from previously in this great talk with His disciples, telling them again about His departure from this world and unto His Father. John 16:28 is a remarkable summary of the work of Jesus.

· I have come forth from the Father: Jesus is God, having existed in heaven’s glory and goodness before He ever came to the earth.

· And have come into the world: Jesus was born as a man, having added humanity to deity.

· Again I leave the world: Jesus would die.

· And go to My Father: Jesus would rise from the dead and ascend to heaven.
i. “In those sentences we have a declaration of the whole redemptive progress of the Son of God. From the Father into the world; from the world unto the Father.” (Morgan)

ii. “Here is the sum of the Christian Faith in four fundamental propositions, which, with their several why and how and result, form the whole body of Christian verity.” (Trench)

b. Now we are sure that You know all things: The summary statement in the previous sentence made the disciples feel that now they understood. They seem to have been sincere, but more confident in their faith than they should have been.

i. “They declared that their belief in the Divinity of His mission was confirmed. They were perfectly sincere. They felt that they had at last passed beyond the region where it would be possible to doubt. How much better He knew them than they knew themselves!” (Morgan)

c. Do you now believe… You will be scattered: Jesus did not doubt the belief of the disciples, but warned them that their faith would be shaken before it was finally settled upon Him. They would find it much easier to believe on Him in the upper room than in the Garden of Gethsemane, where they would all flee each to his own, and would leave Jesus alone.

i. This wasn’t to make an I told you so moment. “The very fact that He had known and had foretold the course of events, would be something to hold on to, and the memory of it would help them back again to faith.” (Morgan)

ii. “The words Do you now believe? can also be taken as a statement. This is preferable, as it brings out better the emphasis laid upon now in the original. ‘You do now believe, but your belief will soon be shaken.’” (Tasker)

iii. “Jesus read their hearts better than they knew. Not only could he answer their unspoken questions: he could assess the strength of their belief in him. It was sincere and genuine, bound up with their love for him, but it was about to be exposed to a test such as they had not imagined.” (Bruce)

d. You will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone: The crisis would come soon, and when it did the disciples would think, every man for himself and abandon Jesus alone.

i. “When he did not need their friendship, they were his very good friends. When they could do nothing for him if they tried, they were his faithful followers. But the pinch has come; now might they watch with him one hour, now might they go with him amid the rabble throng, and interpose at least the vote of the minority against the masses; but they are gone.” (Spurgeon)
ii. “There he stands. They have left him alone; but there he is, still standing to his purpose. He has come to save, and he will save. He has come to redeem, and he will redeem. He has come to overcome the world, and he will overcome it.” (Spurgeon)

e. Yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me: Jesus relied upon His close relationship with God all the way to the cross, and even upon it. In the loneliest moments imaginable, He understood that the Father was with Him.
i. “I remember that passage about Abraham going with Isaac to mount Moriah, where Isaac was to be offered up. It is written, ‘So they went both of them together.’ So did the Eternal Father and his Well- beloved Son when God was about to give up his own Son to death. There was no divided purpose; they went both of them together.” (Spurgeon)

5. (33) The triumphant conclusion to Jesus’ farewell discourse to His disciples and to all of Jesus’ teaching before the cross.“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

a. These things I have spoken to you: In a moment Jesus would pray for His disciples. Before He did, He summarized the purpose of the long talk He had with those disciples: to bring them peace and the settled assurance of overcomers.

b. That in Me you may have peace: Jesus offered His disciples peace. He made the offer in the most unlikely circumstances. At that very minute, Judas met with Jesus’ enemies to plot His arrest. Jesus knew that He would be arrested, forsaken, rejected, mocked, humiliated, tortured and executed before the next day was over. We think that the disciples should have comforted Him – yet Jesus had peace, and enough to give to others.

i. Jesus did not promise peace; He offered it. He said, “you may have peace.” People may follow Jesus yet deny themselves this peace. We gain the peace Jesus offered by finding it in Him. Jesus said, “that in Me you may have peace.” We won’t find real peace anywhere else other than in Jesus.

ii. Jesus made the way to peace with God: Having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 5:1)

iii. Jesus made the way to peace with others: For Jesus is our peace, who has made the both one and broken down the middle wall of division between us. (Ephesians 2:14)

iv. This word of peace is especially meaningful set in the context of conflict – tribulation and overcome both speak of battles to fight. “He promises a peace which co-exists with tribulation and disturbances, a peace which is realized in and through conflict and struggle.” (Maclaren)

v. This promise was especially powerful for those eleven disciples. “He predicted their desertion in the very saying in which He assured them of the peace He would give them. He loved them for who they were and despite their shortcomings.” (Morris)

c. In the world you will have tribulation: Jesus also made the promise of tribulation. Peace is offered to us, but tribulation is promised. When we become Christians we may bring fewer problems upon ourselves, but we definitely still have them.

i. Understanding this removes a false hope. Struggling Christians often hope for the day when they will laugh at temptation and there will be one effortless victory after another. We are promised struggle as long as we are in this world; yet there is peace in Jesus.

ii. “There is no avoiding it; it is not a paradise, but a purgatory to the saints. It may be compared to the Straits of Magellan, which is said to be a place of that nature, that which way soever a man set his course, he shall be sure to have the wind against him.” (Trapp)

d. Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world: Jesus proclaimed the truth of His victory. This was an amazing statement from a man about to be arrested, forsaken, rejected, mocked, tortured and executed. Judas, the religious authorities, Pilate, the crowd, the soldiers or even death and the grave could not overcome Him. Instead, Jesus could truly say, “I have overcome the world.” If it was true then, it’s even truer now.

i. When Jesus wanted to comfort and strengthen His disciples, He spoke of His victory, not directly theirvictory. This wasn’t “cheer up” or “try harder.” Jesus knew that His victory would be theirs.

ii. “He overcame the world in three areas: in His life, in His death, and in His resurrection.” (Boice)

iii. “This statement, spoken as it is in the shadow of the cross, is audacious… He goes to the cross not in fear or in gloom, but as a conqueror.” (Morris)

iv. “He overcame the world when nobody else had overcome it.” (Spurgeon)

v. The thought that Jesus has overcome became precious to John. “Nikeo occurs only here in the Gospel, but twenty-two times in the Johannine Epistles and Apocalypse.” (Dods)

vi. “The world conquers me when it comes between me and God, when it fills my desires, when it absorbs my energies, when it blinds my eyes to the things unseen and eternal.” (Maclaren)
​
vii. Knowing that Jesus has overcome the world brings us good cheer. It is the foundation for our peace in Him. We see that Jesus is in control, we see that although He leaves He does not abandon, we see that He loves, and we see that the victory is His. We can be of good cheer indeed.

​Matthew 24:8 ESV / 61 helpful votes Helpful Not HelpfulAll these are but the beginning of the birth pains.
1 Thessalonians 5:3 ESV / 57 helpful votes While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
Matthew 24:1-51 ESV / 48 helpful votes Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?” And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. ...
Genesis 3:16 ESV / 42 helpful votes To the woman he said, “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.”
Matthew 24:3 ESV / 29 helpful votes As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?”
Revelation 12:1-2 ESV / 26 helpful votes And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth.
Matthew 24:30 ESV / 25 helpful votes Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
Isaiah 26:17-18 ESV / 25 helpful votes Like a pregnant woman who writhes and cries out in her pangs when she is near to giving birth, so were we because of you, O Lord; we were pregnant, we writhed, but we have given birth to wind. We have accomplished no deliverance in the earth, and the inhabitants of the world have not fallen.
Luke 21:20-24 ESV / 23 helpful votes “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let not those who are out in the country enter it, for these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written. Alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! For there will be great distress upon the earth and wrath against this people. They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
Matthew 24:13 ESV / 20 helpful votes But the one who endures to the end will be saved.
Matthew 24:4-8 ESV / 20 helpful votes And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.
Matthew 24:21 ESV / 19 helpful votes For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.
Matthew 24:7 ESV / 18 helpful votes For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places.
Revelation 21:4 ESV / 15 helpful votes He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
Mark 13:8 ESV / 14 helpful votes For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.
Matthew 24:4 ESV / 14 helpful votes And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray.
Daniel 12:11 ESV / 14 helpful votes And from the time that the regular burnt offering is taken away and the abomination that makes desolate is set up, there shall be 1,290 days.
Daniel 11:31 ESV / 14 helpful votes Forces from him shall appear and profane the temple and fortress, and shall take away the regular burnt offering. And they shall set up the abomination that makes desolate.
Jeremiah 4:31 ESV / 14 helpful votes For I heard a cry as of a woman in labor, anguish as of one giving birth to her first child, the cry of the daughter of Zion gasping for breath, stretching out her hands, “Woe is me! I am fainting before murderers.”
Romans 8:22 ESV / 13 helpful votes For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.
John 16:21 ESV / 13 helpful votes When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.
Matthew 24:29 ESV / 13 helpful votes “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
Matthew 24:15 ESV / 13 helpful votes “So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),
Matthew 24:14 ESV / 13 helpful votes And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
Jeremiah 30:7 ESV / 13 helpful votes Alas! That day is so great there is none like it; it is a time of distress for Jacob; yet he shall be saved out of it.
Isaiah 13:10 ESV / 13 helpful votes For the stars of the heavens and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be dark at its rising, and the moon will not shed its light.
Matthew 24:36 ESV / 12 helpful votes “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.
Matthew 24:34 ESV / 12 helpful votes Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.
Isaiah 34:4 ESV / 12 helpful votes All the host of heaven shall rot away, and the skies roll up like a scroll. All their host shall fall, as leaves fall from the vine, like leaves falling from the fig tree.
Ephesians 6:12 ESV / 10 helpful votes For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
Romans 8:28 ESV / 10 helpful votes And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
Romans 8:22-23 ESV / 10 helpful votes For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
Matthew 24:26 ESV / 10 helpful votes So, if they say to you, ‘Look, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.
Genesis 3:1-24 ESV / 10 helpful votes Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” ...
Revelation 12:1-17 ESV / 9 helpful votes And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, ...
1 Corinthians 15:22 ESV / 9 helpful votes For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
Luke 17:1-37 ESV / 9 helpful votes And he said to his disciples, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin. Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him, and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.” The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” ...
Matthew 24:6 ESV / 9 helpful votes And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet.
Matthew 24:5 ESV / 9 helpful votes For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.
Daniel 9:27 ESV / 9 helpful votes And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.”
Revelation 12:2 ESV / 8 helpful votes She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth.
Revelation 10:7 ESV / 8 helpful votes But that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.
2 Peter 3:3 ESV / 8 helpful votes Knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires.
1 Peter 3:8 ESV / 8 helpful votes Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.
Philippians 4:6 ESV / 8 helpful votes Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
Mark 14:1-72 ESV / 8 helpful votes It was now two days before the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to arrest him by stealth and kill him, for they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar from the people.” And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. There were some who said to themselves indignantly, “Why was the ointment wasted like that? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.” And they scolded her. ...
Matthew 24:28 ESV / 8 helpful votes Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.
Matthew 24:27 ESV / 8 helpful votes For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
Matthew 24:16 ESV / 8 helpful votes Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
Matthew 24:2 ESV / 8 helpful votes But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”
Psalm 34:18 ESV / 8 helpful votes The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.
Revelation 17:1-18 ESV / 7 helpful votes Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.” And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth's abominations.” ...
Galatians 4:19 ESV / 7 helpful votes My little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you!
Romans 8:18 ESV / 7 helpful votes For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
Hosea 13:13 ESV / 7 helpful votes The pangs of childbirth come for him, but he is an unwise son, for at the right time he does not present himself at the opening of the womb.
Ezekiel 38:1-23 ESV / 7 helpful votes The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, set your face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him and say, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. And I will turn you about and put hooks into your jaws, and I will bring you out, and all your army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed in full armor, a great host, all of them with buckler and shield, wielding swords. Persia, Cush, and Put are with them, all of them with shield and helmet; ...
Jeremiah 29:11 ESV / 7 helpful votes For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Isaiah 66:7-8 ESV / 7 helpful votes “Before she was in labor she gave birth; before her pain came upon her she delivered a son. Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Shall a land be born in one day? Shall a nation be brought forth in one moment? For as soon as Zion was in labor she brought forth her children.
Isaiah 66:7 ESV / 7 helpful votes “Before she was in labor she gave birth; before her pain came upon her she delivered a son.
Isaiah 41:10 ESV / 7 helpful votes Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Revelation 9:10 ESV / 6 helpful votes They have tails and stings like scorpions, and their power to hurt people for five months is in their tails.
2 Peter 3:10 ESV / 6 helpful votes But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.
2 Peter 3:8 ESV / 6 helpful votes But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
1 Peter 3:18 ESV / 6 helpful votes For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,
2 Thessalonians 2:8-12 ESV / 6 helpful votes And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Philippians 4:13 ESV / 6 helpful votes I can do all things through him who strengthens me.
Philippians 4:5 ESV / 6 helpful votes Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand;
2 Corinthians 4:4 ESV / 6 helpful votes In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
1 Corinthians 15:26 ESV / 6 helpful votes The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
1 Corinthians 15:1-58 ESV / 6 helpful votes Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. ...
Micah 5:3 ESV / 6 helpful votes Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel.
Jeremiah 49:22 ESV / 6 helpful votes Behold, one shall mount up and fly swiftly like an eagle and spread his wings against Bozrah, and the heart of the warriors of Edom shall be in that day like the heart of a woman in her birth pains.”
Jeremiah 30:6 ESV / 6 helpful votes Ask now, and see, can a man bear a child? Why then do I see every man with his hands on his stomach like a woman in labor? Why has every face turned pale?
2 Corinthians 12:9-10 ESV / 5 helpful votes But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Mark 3:27 ESV / 5 helpful votes But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.
Matthew 24:33 ESV / 5 helpful votes So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates.
Matthew 24:1 ESV / 5 helpful votes Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple.
Daniel 9:24 ESV / 5 helpful votes “Seventy weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place.
Jeremiah 49:24 ESV / 5 helpful votes Damascus has become feeble, she turned to flee, and panic seized her; anguish and sorrows have taken hold of her, as of a woman in labor.
Jeremiah 22:23 ESV / 5 helpful votes O inhabitant of Lebanon, nested among the cedars, how you will be pitied when pangs come upon you, pain as of a woman in labor!”
Isaiah 26:9 ESV / 5 helpful votes My soul yearns for you in the night; my spirit within me earnestly seeks you. For when your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
Isaiah 21:3 ESV / 5 helpful votes Therefore my loins are filled with anguish; pangs have seized me, like the pangs of a woman in labor; I am bowed down so that I cannot hear; I am dismayed so that I cannot see.
Psalm 119:105 ESV / 5 helpful votes Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
Genesis 1:27 ESV / 5 helpful votes So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
Revelation 20:7-9 ESV / 4 helpful votes And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them,
Revelation 20:4 ESV / 4 helpful votes Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
Revelation 20:1-3 ESV / 4 helpful votes Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.
Revelation 11:2 ESV / 4 helpful votes But do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.
Revelation 6:16 ESV / 4 helpful votes Calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb,
Revelation 1:1-20 ESV / 4 helpful votes The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near. John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood ...
1 Peter 5:9-10 ESV / 4 helpful votes Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.
Hebrews 11:1 ESV / 4 helpful votes Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Philippians 4:8 ESV / 4 helpful votes Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
John 14:27 ESV / 4 helpful votes Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
John 5:28 ESV / 4 helpful votes Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice
Luke 21:10 ESV / 4 helpful votes Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.
Luke 1:37 ESV / 4 helpful votes For nothing will be impossible with God.”
Matthew 24:35 ESV / 4 helpful votes Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
Matthew 6:33 ESV / 4 helpful votes But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Micah 4:9-10 ESV / 4 helpful votes Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king in you? Has your counselor perished, that pain seized you like a woman in labor? Writhe and groan, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in labor, for now you shall go out from the city and dwell in the open country; you shall go to Babylon. There you shall be rescued; there the Lord will redeem you from the hand of your enemies.