WHAT IS THE TRIBULATION? (Part 1 of 2)
Unchanging Faith ❧ Part 23
Selected Passages ❧ Pastor, Dr. John Denney

This morning we’re going to look at a prophetic event of global seismic proportions the Bible calls the
Tribulation. Over the past number of years the idea of a world-wide apocalypse has been growing in
popularity by leaps and bounds. I think the reason is simple: the world sees the handwriting on the
wall. Many feel as though civilization is like a pressurized container of Pillsbury dough biscuits
coming unwrapped. There’s a growing sense of uneasiness that at any moment the canister, or the
world in this case, is about to explode. Unfortunately many have gained their understanding of a
world-wide apocalypse based more on the box office than the Bible. Highly imaginative movies that
range from alien invasions, global war, pandemics, zombie outbreaks, and environmental disasters
may feed our fears but not our faith. This morning, I want to feed your faith and starve your fears.
Just to be clear, the whole idea of a world-wide tribulation didn’t come from Hollywood, it came from
the Bible. In fact, the Bible talks a lot about the Tribulation. More space is given to the topic of the
Tribulation in the Bible than Heaven, Hell, or any other subject outside of salvation and the promise of
Christ’s return. To give you an idea, the book of Revelation devotes 14 of its 22 chapters to the
Tribulation (Rev. 6-19). Jesus’ longest prophetic message known as the Olivet Discourse was
devoted to it (Matt. 24-25). The OT refers to the Tribulation some 49 times. In addition, the Bible
uses some 30 different names to describe it. The most commonly known name is the Tribulation
(Matt. 24:29) or the Great Tribulation (Matt. 24:21; Rev. 2:22; 7:14). The OT describes this as the
time of Jacob’s trouble (Jer. 30:7), or the seventieth week of Daniel (Dan. 9:27).
There are two key questions I want to try and answer this morning about the Tribulation: 1) What is
the Tribulation? 2) What is God’s purpose for the Tribulation?
I. What is the Tribulation? We typically think of tribulation as life’s troubles and difficulties. Job
says: For man is born for trouble, as sparks fly upward (Job 5:7). Man, who is born of a woman is
short-lived and full of turmoil (Job 14:1). Life is full of troubles and tribulation (John 16:33). But the
coming time of Tribulation will be seven long years of trouble unlike the world has ever known.
Jesus described the Tribulation this way: For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not
occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will (Matthew 24:21, NAS). Jesus is
saying there will come a time in which the nation of Israel and the world will pass the point of no
return in their rebellion against God. Like the global flood of Noah’s day God will flood the earth with
His wrath. There will be no escape. Just like we’re amazed at how in the world they can get all those
Pillsbury dough biscuits in one little container, the world is going to be amazed how much God is
going to pack into seven years of judgment.
As I mentioned, the Bible talks a lot about the Tribulation. It is described by a number of names in the
Bible: Jesus calls it the tribulation (Matt. 24:29) or the great tribulation (Matt. 24:21). The prophet
Daniel described it as an unparalleled time of distress for the nation for Israel (Dan. 12:1). Jeremiah
called it Jacob’s distress (Jer. 30:7). The Apostle Paul called it the Day of the Lord (1 Thess. 5:2).
John, in the book of Revelation, calls it the wrath of God…the hour of judgement (Rev. 15:1; 14:7).
A. It will come after the rapture of the Church. The next prophetic event on God’s
calendar is the rapture of His Church. When that happens it will bring an end to the Church age. The
Church will no longer be here on Earth but in Heaven (1 Thess. 4:17). The unique role of the Church
here on Earth will have been completed. Paul describes it as the time when the restrainer will be
removed (2 Thess. 2:7). This is the Holy Spirit in and through the Church is restraining sin in the
world, holding it on a leash so to speak. The removal of the Church signals what is known as the Day
of the Lord, i.e. God’s judgement. It begins with the Rapture and ends with the Millennium. Sometime

shortly following the rapture, no one knows how long, the Antichrist, the man of lawlessness will be
revealed (2 Thess. 2:3). How do I know the Church won’t be here? God makes this promise to the
Church over and over. I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole
world to test those who belong to this world (Revelation 3:10, NLT). Having now been justified by His
blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him (Romans 5:9). Some say this means
God will protect the Church during the Tribulation like He protected Israel during the plagues of Egypt.
But the Bible makes it very clear millions of believers will die a martyr’s death during the Tribulation.
B. It will be a time of unparalleled global suffering and horror. In all history there has
never been such a time of terror. It will be a time of trouble for my people Israel (Jeremiah 30:7, NLT).
No other people group has suffered like the Jews. Their history has been heavily punctuated with
war and suffering, bondage and conflict one after the other. From their enslavement to Egypt to the
Holocaust, Israel has known incredible trouble – more so than any other nation. It was true in the OT
& NT and it is still true today. On the day after Israel announced their independence (May 14, 1948)
they were brutally attacked by five Arab armies (Egypt, Transjordan, Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon). Only
two years ago, October 7, 2023, Israel witnessed the most horrific and ruthless attack since the
holocaust. Israel has overcome her enemies and will continue to because of God’s promise. But the
conflicts and the wars are not going away – they’re getting worse. Israel is pummeled almost daily
with incoming enemy missiles. Antisemitism from around the world is accelerating at unbelievable
levels. Netanyahu once said, If the Arabs were to put down their weapons today, there would be no
more violence. If the Jews were to put down their weapons today, there would be no more Israel.
But God says there is a day of distress for Israel coming unlike anything they’ve ever known. Why?
Simply because they continue to turn their back on God. But that doesn’t mean God has given up on
the Jews. The Apostle Paul noted: Some of the people of Israel have hard hearts, but this will last
only until the full number of Gentiles comes to Christ (Romans 11:25). Right now, God is swiftly
brining in the full number of Gentiles to Christ. We know that time is quickly coming to an end not
only because violence is exponentially increasing against Israel, but also because the enormous
increase in conflicts around the world. Jesus said the coming Tribulation would be preceded by the
birth pains of wars and the rumors of wars (Matt. 24:6). The growing number of wars and rumors of
wars we are seeing are the advancing shadow of the coming Tribulation.
II. What is God’s purpose for the Tribulation?
A. To refine Israel. Zechariah writes, Two-thirds of the people in the land will be cut off
and die,” says the Lord. “But one-third will be left in the land. I will bring that group through the fire
and make them pure. I will refine them like silver and purify them like gold. They will call on my name,
and I will answer them. I will say, ‘These are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God
(Zechariah 13:8-9, NLT). There will come a time when Israel will no longer be able to depend on her
miliary strength or the help of another nation. There will be no help. Israel will suffer great loss to the
point that two-thirds of them will die. But one third will cry out to God. They will look on me whom
they have pierced and mourn for him as for an only son. They will grieve bitterly for him as for a
firstborn son who has died (Zechariah 12:10). Jesus prophesied to them: I tell you this, you will never
see me again until you say, ‘Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! (Matthew
23:39).
B. To punish the Gentiles. I, the Lord, will punish the world for its evil and the wicked for
their sin. I will crush the arrogance of the proud and humble the pride of the mighty. I will make people
scarcer than gold— more rare than the fine gold of Ophir. For I will shake the heavens. The earth will
move from its place when the Lord of Heaven’s Armies displays his wrath in the day of his fierce
anger (Isaiah 13:11-13). This will be a time when God will punish the Gentile nations for their rebellion
against God and rejection of their only hope of forgiveness through Jesus Christ. God will also

punish the Gentiles for their persecution of the Jewish nation. I will gather the armies of the world into
the valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will judge them for harming my people, my special possession, for
scattering my people among the nations, and for dividing up my land (Joel 3:2, NLT).
C. To prove who God is. Remember the former things long past, for I am God, and there
is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from
ancient times things which have not been done, saying, ‘My purpose will be established, and I will
accomplish all My good pleasure (Isaiah 46:9-10, NAS). God has demonstrated Who He is to the
world again and again, while the world thumbed its nose at Him. But not this time. In a series of 21
judgements over a period of 2,520 days or seven years (Rev. 6-19) God will bring the world to its
knees. Psalm 2 has the Tribulation in mind when God says: Now therefore, O kings, show
discernment; Take warning, O judges of the earth.Worship the Lord with reverence And rejoice with
trembling. Do homage to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way, for His wrath
may soon be kindled. How blessed are all who take refuge in Him! (Psalm 2:10-12). The world will
know God and every knee will bow and every tongue confess Jesus is Lord (Phil. 2:10).
D. To unmask Satan. Revelation 12 says during this time Satan will be very aware his
time is short. But terror will come on the earth and the sea, for the devil has come down to you in
great anger, knowing that he has little time (Revelation 12:12). He will be bound and thrown into a pit
for a thousand years so he could not deceive the nations (Rev. 20:2-3). The antichrist will be brought
an end by the spoken word of Jesus. Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay
with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; that is, the one
whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan (2 Thessalonians 2:8-9). When Hitler rose to
power in Nazi Germany many believed his deceptively assuring words of peace and tolerance. He
spoke of a “Positive Christianity” convincing many he was a true friend of Christianity. Sadly, the
majority of churches and church leaders believed him to their own dismay. Ultimately, Hitler could not
hide his evil, neither will Satan, the Antichrist, or the False Prophet be able to.
E. To save many. Even though the Tribulation will be a time of God’s great wrath, it will
also be a time of His great mercy and forgiveness as well. The Tribulation will be the greatest harvest
of souls the world has ever known. After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which
no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the
throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands
(Revelation 7:9). Once the Tribulation begins many will realize the Bible is true, God is real, and they
need to take Him seriously. At that time John says a great multitude no one could count will come to
Christ. God is far more merciful, forgiving, and loving than we have any idea. He tells us in Ezekiel:
For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,” declares the Lord God. “Therefore, repent
and live (Ezekiel 18:32). Many for the first time will turn to Him and discover God’s mercy. What a
great day that will be.
We so often miss the heart of God when we’re ourselves are going through tribulation. Sometimes
that is the only way He can get our attention. You may feel like God is allowing you to go through a
time of tribulation right now and you don’t understand it. You may feel like the little by who was
floating his boat in a pond when it suddenly began to drift away. A man came along who saw the
boat drifting in the pond and began throwing rocks on the far side of the pond. The boy asked, “Hey,
what are doing?” But no sooner did he ask than he noticed the rocks were creating ripples pushing
the boat back to the boy. Even when rocks of tribulation disturb the smooth waters of our lives, God
has a good purpose. Sometimes that is the way God needs to work in our lives to keep us from
drifting from Him. Experiencing any rocks lately?