My burden in this message concerns the great tribulation. Rev. 8:13 says, “And I saw, and I heard an eagle flying in mid-heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to those who dwell on the earth because of the remaining sounds of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to trumpet.” The three woes of the last three trumpets (Rev. 9:12; 11:14) will be the woes of the great tribulation (Matt. 24:21). As we shall see, they will occur in the last half of the seventieth week (Dan. 9:27), a period of three and one-half years (Dan. 7:25; 12:7 Rev, 12:14), forty-two months (Rev. 11:2; 13:5), or twelve hundred and sixty days (Rev. 11:3; 12:6).
Many Christians think that the great tribulation will last seven years. Some believe this because they understand the Bible in a careless and traditional way. But the word of the Bible is very accurate, and we must understand it in the way of being enlightened. No word in the Bible is wasted; every word is meaningful and accurate.
Let us now consider Dan. 9:24-27. Verse 24 says, “Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.” The people mentioned here are Daniel’s people and the holy city refers to Jerusalem. According to the Bible, a week here does not mean seven days but seven years. If you say that the seventy weeks refer to seventy periods of seven days, you will never have the proper interpretation of this passage.
Verse 25 says, “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.” Here we see “seven weeks” and then “threescore and two weeks.” Verse 26 continues, “And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.” The reference to Messiah’s being “cut off” points to Christ’s being crucified on the cross. The destruction of the city and the sanctuary refers to the destruction of the temple and of the city of Jerusalem under Titus in A.D. 70.
Verse 27 concludes, saying, “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.” Here we see that the prince will confirm the covenant for one week and that in the midst of the week, that is, after three and one-half years, he will cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease. This means that he will discontinue the worship of God.
These seventy weeks constitute four hundred ninety years beginning from the twentieth year of Artaxerxes, who issued the decree to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem (Neh. 1:1; 2:1). The first seven weeks, forty-nine years, were for the finishing of the rebuilding of the street and wall of Jerusalem. From then until Christ was “cut off” were sixty-two weeks, four hundred thirty-four years. Since the end of the sixty-nine weeks, there has been a long period of suspension. Eventually, the time of the last week, the last seven years, will come. This is the source of the thought that the great tribulation will last seven years.
As we shall now see, this concept is not accurate. The last seven years, the last week, will be the time when Antichrist will make an agreement with the Jewish people. During the first half of these seven years, Antichrist will be friendly to the Jews. But after three and one-half years, he will change his mind. Although he formerly agreed that the Jews could worship God in the temple by offering the sacrifices, he will change his mind, set himself up as God, erect an image of himself in the temple, and force people to worship him and his image. Then he will begin to mistreat the Jews. Thus, the first half of the seven years will not be a time of tribulation, for during that time Antichrist will be friendly to the Jews. According to Daniel 9:27, “in the midst of the week” Antichrist “shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,” commanding the Jews to cease worshipping God and offering sacrifices to Him. Antichrist will also erect the abomination of desolation in the Holy Place. According to Revelation, the abomination of desolation will be the image of Antichrist set up as an idol in the temple.
Let us now turn to Matt. 24, a chapter which covers this matter of the great tribulation. In verse 15 the Lord Jesus said, “When therefore you see the abomination of desolation, spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place.” When will this be? It will not be in the beginning of the seven years but in the middle of the seven years, at the time when Antichrist will discontinue the worship of God, set himself up as God, and put his image in the temple, which, in the eyes of God, is the abomination. Then in verse 21 the Lord predicted, “For then there shall be great tribulation, such as has not occurred from the beginning of the world until now, nor ever shall be.” By this we see that the great tribulation, which begins in the middle of the last seven years, will be only three and one-half years long. The traditional teaching that it will be seven years long is inexact, and we should not follow it. It does not provide the proper details for the study of prophecy. Those who hold the traditional teachings speak of the seven years, neglecting that it is in the midst of the seven years that Antichrist will change his mind and that this will bring in the great tribulation lasting three and one-half years, the second half of the final week.
We also need to consider some verses from Revelation 12. Verses 5 and 6 say, “And she brought forth a son, a man-child who was about to shepherd all the nations with an iron rod; and her child was caught up to God and to His throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, so that they might nourish her there a thousand two hundred and sixty days.” The one thousand two hundred and sixty days are the equivalent of three and one-half years. After the man-child is raptured, there will be a period of three and one-half years, the last half of the seventieth week, the time during which the image of Antichrist will be set up in the temple. Then verses 7 through 13 reveal that there will be war in heaven, that the dragon and his angels will be cast out of heaven to the earth, and that the dragon will persecute the woman who brought forth the man-child. Verse 14 says, “And the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman that she might fly into the wilderness into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time from the face of the serpent.” This “time, and times, and half a time” refers to the final three and one-half years. In this portion of the Word we see that Satan will be cast down from heaven to earth at the beginning of the last half of the seven years. This also proves that, strictly speaking, the great tribulation will last three and one-half years and not seven years.
Further proof of this is in Revelation 11:2, which says, “And the court which is outside of the temple cast out and do not measure it, because it has been given to the nations, and they will trample under foot the holy city forty-two months.” In this verse we are told that the city of Jerusalem will be trodden by the Gentiles for forty-two months. The Gentiles who will trample the holy city will be Antichrist and his armies. This corresponds to the prophecy in Daniel 9 where Antichrist breaks the covenant, sets himself up as God, and commands people to worship him. That will also be the time when he will trample the holy city. This will be during the great tribulation. Therefore, the great tribulation will start at the beginning of the last three and one-half years when Satan is cast down from heaven to earth. As we have seen, this is mentioned clearly in chapter twelve.
With this as a background, we come now to the fifth trumpet. Revelation 9:1 says, “And the fifth angel trumpeted, and I saw a star out of heaven fallen to the earth, and to him was given the key of the shaft of the abyss.” The star here refers to Satan, who will be cast down from heaven to earth. The angels are likened to stars (Job 38:7; Rev. 12:4). As the archangel, Satan was the daystar (Isa. 14:12, Heb.). In Luke 10:18 we see the judgment upon him. Here, and in Rev. 12:9-10, we see the execution of that judgment. The abyss is the dwelling place of the demons (Luke 8:31, translated deep in KJV).
When will Satan fall out of heaven to earth? The answer to this question is in chapter twelve. That chapter reveals that after the man-child is raptured to heaven, he will fight against Satan and seem to say to him, “Satan, now that we are here, there is no place for you. You must be cast down.” According to that chapter, Satan will fall from heaven at the beginning of the last three and one-half years. We have pointed out that this is a strong proof that the great tribulation will not begin before then, for, prior to this, Satan will still be in heaven.
When Satan falls from heaven to earth, the key of the abyss will be given to him that he may open the abyss to release the demon-possessed locusts to torment man for five months.
Because the great tribulation begins with the first woe at the sounding of the fifth trumpet, it includes neither the sixth seal nor the first four trumpets. The sixth seal will be a supernatural calamity, and the first four trumpets will be judgments upon the earth, the sea, the rivers, and the heavenly hosts. But these judgments are not a part of the great tribulation. The first four trumpets are very severe, but they do not injure man directly. Following them will come the great tribulation which will directly torment man. Prior to the fifth trumpet, man will not be touched directly; only the earth, the sea, the rivers, and the heavenly hosts will be directly damaged. This may be considered as a preliminary to the coming great tribulation. God’s judgment of the earth, the sea, the waters, and the heavens is a warning to man. At the time of the fifth trumpet, man himself will be directly tormented.
Verses 3 through 5 say, “And out of the smoke came forth locusts to the earth, and authority was given to them as the scorpions of the earth have authority. And it was said to them that they should not injure the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, except men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. And it was given them, not that they should kill them, but that they should be tormented five months; and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man.” The locusts here are not like the locusts in Exo. 10:12-15, because they have tails like scorpions and stings and they injure man (v. 10). They must be demon-possessed ones, because they come out of the smoke which issues from the dwelling place of the demons (v. 2). The plagues of the first four trumpets are not directly upon man, whereas the woes of the last three trumpets are. Those who will not be injured by the demon-possessed locusts are the Israelites who have the seal of God on their foreheads (Rev. 7:3-8).
In verses 7 through 10 we see the characteristics of these locusts. Verses 7 and 9 are very similar to Joel 2:4-5, 25, and 1:6, words spoken concerning Israel. This, with the fact that the Israelites need to be sealed by God to escape the injury of the locusts, may indicate that the woe of the fifth trumpet is especially upon the Israelites. Verse 7 says, “And the likenesses of the locusts were like horses prepared for war, and on their heads as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as faces of men.” These locusts are like an army, similar to the locusts mentioned in the book of Joel, where we are told that God will send an army of locusts. While the locusts in Revelation 9 are not to be identified with the locusts in Joel, they are related. The likenesses of the locusts are like horses prepared for war, and they have crowns like gold on their heads. Their hair is as the hair of women, and their teeth are like the teeth of lions (v. 8). They have breastplates as breastplates of iron, and “the sound of their wings” is as “the sound of the chariots of many horses rushing into battle” (v. 9).
Verse 10 says that “they have tails like scorpions, and stings.” In the Bible, scorpions signify demons, the evil spirits that follow Satan. In Luke 10:19 the Lord said, “Behold, I have given you the authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy.” We, the believers in Christ, have overcome the scorpions, Satan’s demonic servants. Verse 10 also says that “in their tails is their authority to injure men five months.” Although the torment of the first woe will damage man directly, the time will still be limited by God to a period of five months. The torment will be so excruciating that “in those days men shall seek death and shall by no means find it; and they shall long to die, and death flees from them” (v. 6). During these five months, those who are tormented by these dreadful, demon-possessed locusts would rather die than live. Surely the shaking of the earth and the blackening of the sun are nothing compared to this. This is the first of the three woes announced by the eagle from mid-heaven in 8:13.
Speaking of the locusts, verse 11 says, “They have a king over them, the angel of the abyss: his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek he has the name Apollyon.” The angel of the abyss is the beast, the Antichrist, who will come out of the pit of the abyss (Rev. 11:7; 17:8). In Hebrew the angel of the abyss is called Abaddon, which means destruction, as in Job 26:6; 28:22 and Proverbs 15:11. In Greek he will have the name Apollyon, which means destroyer. The Antichrist will do much destroying (Dan. 8:23-25).
Antichrist is a special person, being the composite of two persons: the spirit of Caesar Nero and the body of another Caesar of the Roman Empire. Nero began the persecution of the Christians in the first century, and his is the spirit that is kept in the abyss until the day it will be released to enter into the body of another Caesar. The Caesar into which this spirit will enter will be killed and will be resurrected with the spirit of Caesar Nero. This will be Antichrist. Satan will then release the locusts which will be organized as an army under the rule of the beast, Antichrist, who will be their king. The locusts will proceed to torment for five months those who do not have the mark of God on their foreheads.
According to the Bible, the universe is composed of three sections: the heavens, the earth, and the region under the earth (Phil. 2:10). At the beginning of the great tribulation, that is, after the first half of the last seven years, Satan will be cast down from heaven to earth and, simultaneously, Antichrist, the king of the devilish, demon-possessed locusts, will be released from the abyss and ascend to meet with Satan. Thus, a devilish spirit will meet a devilish man. Although they will come from two directions, Satan from above and Antichrist from beneath, they will have one goal — to torment the mankind created by God. These two figures will come together and will collaborate in tormenting mankind as much as possible. We shall consider Antichrist in more detail when we come to chapters thirteen and seventeen.
As we have seen, the great tribulation will last three and one-half years. Before that time, there will be the supernatural calamities of the sixth seal and the first four trumpets. But according to Matthew 24:22, the great tribulation will be limited to a short time which will begin only after Antichrist erects the abomination of desolation in the Holy Place.
Where will you be when the great tribulation is taking place? Do not say, “As long as I am among the heavenly people, I will be all right.” As God’s heavenly people, we do not have the mark that is on the chosen remnant of the Israelites. The heavenly people should not be there, for God has no intention of leaving us on earth with the remnant of Israel. God’s intention is to rapture us to the heavens. However, if we would be raptured to the heavens, there is a condition to fulfill — we must be mature. God’s way of dealing with the Israelites differs from His way of dealing with the believers. If I were an Israelite, I might cry to God, and He might have mercy on me and put a mark upon my forehead. Then I would be preserved during the tribulation. But God does not seal the believers; instead, He raptures them away to the heavens. But for this, they must be mature.
My burden in this message is to point out when the great tribulation will begin and what will bring it about. As we have seen, Satan will be cast from heaven to earth and will have the key to open the abyss and release the demon-possessed locusts. At the same time, the beast, Antichrist, the king of the locusts, will be released from the abyss. The army of locusts will then torment people for five months. The torment will be so severe that people will want to die, but death will flee from them. Today, people seek to avoid death, yet death pursues them. At that time, they will desire death, but it will elude them. What suffering that will be! What great tribulation! However, this is only the first woe, the beginning of the great tribulation. The two other woes are yet to come.
The three woes of the last three trumpets constitute the great tribulation. The first woe will be the fifth trumpet, the second woe will be the sixth trumpet, and the last woe will be the seven bowls of the seventh trumpet. The three woes are introduced very solemnly. As we have seen, 8:13 says, “Woe, woe, woe, to those who dwell on the earth because of the remaining sounds of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to trumpet.” Revelation 9:12 says, “The first woe is past; behold, two woes are yet to come after these things.” Finally, introducing the last woe, 11:14 says, “The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is coming swiftly.” The sixth seal and the first four trumpets are merely a preliminary to the suffering of the great tribulation.
This great tribulation probably along with the supernatural calamities of the sixth seal and the first four trumpets is the “trial which is about to come on the whole inhabited earth, to try them who dwell on the earth” (3:10). The Lord promised the church in Philadelphia that He would keep them out of this hour. If you would be kept from the hour of trial, you must be ready to be raptured from this earth. We should not talk lightly concerning the Lord’s coming or the rapture of the saints. According to the pure Word, if we want to be raptured before the tribulation, we must be mature and ready for Him to take us from this earth. If we are mature and ready, then whatever happens on earth will not affect us. Praise the Lord that we have a way of escape.
