The Day of the Lord and the Tribulation

Many believe that the Day of the Lord will begin at the start of the tribulation. In fact, I saw this teaching being promoted in a Bible prophecy book on a table at my church.

Does the Bible really support the idea that the Day of the Lord will begin at the start of the tribulation? Find out in this article.

Day of the Lord As a “Thief in the Night”

Many people compare the Day of the Lord’s coming as a “thief in the night” by citing these verses:

“For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.” (1 Thessalonians 5:2)

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” (2 Peter 3:10)

The common view is that the Day of the Lord will come when everyone is not expecting it to arrive. Some people take it further by stating that the Day of the Lord can start at any moment because it will sneak up on us like a thief.

However, the Bible indicates that the Day of the Lord may not come as a “thief in the night” to everyone.

1 Thessalonians 5:2-4

The Day of the Lord will only come as a thief in the night to the wicked. For instance, 1 Thessalonians 5:2-4 implies that those “in darkness” (the wicked) will be overtaken by the Day of the Lord when it comes as a “thief in the night” to them (verse 3):

“(2) For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. (3) For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. (4) But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.” (1 Thessalonians 5:2-4)

If you are not “in darkness” the Day of the Lord will not overtake you as a thief according to verse 4.

Revelation 3

The idea that the Day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night to only the wicked is also in Revelation 3. Christ told the church in Sardis that He will come as a thief to them if they do not watch (verse 3):

“(1) And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. (2) Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. (3) Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.” (Revelation 3:1-3)

Conversely, Christ won’t come as a thief to the church in Sardis if they keep watch, receive, hear, hold fast, and repent (verse 3).

2 Thessalonians 2

2 Thessalonians 2 disproves the notion that the Day of the Lord can come at any time. Verses 1-4 state that the Day of Christ (a term synonymous with the Day of the Lord) cannot come until at least after the Antichrist reveals himself and claims to be God:[1]

“(1) Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, (2) That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. (3) Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; (4) Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” (2 Thessalonians 2:1-4)

These events have not taken place yet. Therefore, some things still need to happen before the Day of the Lord can come as a thief in the night to the wicked.

What a “Thief in a Night” Means

The Day of the Lord coming as a “thief in the night” means that it will come at a time when most won’t expect it. Most thieves prefer to work at night because it is a time when most people are not keeping watch over their property. However, some are not completely caught off guard when a thief comes because they remain vigilant at night.

The Bible provides information about what signs people need to watch for to know when the Day of the Lord is near. People who heed these signs will not be caught off guard.

The wicked are unlikely going to be aware of these signs because they are not grounded in God’s Word. The Day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night to them because they will be unaware that it’s coming until it is already too late.

Day of the Lord Signs

The first step to finding when the Day of the Lord will begin is to find out what signs precede its coming. Joel 2:31 and Acts 2:20 state that the sun shall turn dark and the moon shall appear as blood just before the Day of the Lord begins.

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

“The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:” (Acts 2:20)

Therefore, we need to know when the sun and moon’s appearance will change to find when the Day of the Lord will begin.

The Olivet Discourse

Christ gave us a good idea of what we will see prior to the start of the Day of the Lord when He gave the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21). Christ mentioned that one of the things we will see is the setting up of the abomination of desolation that Daniel wrote about:

When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)” (Matthew 24:15)

The abomination of desolation that Daniel mentioned will arise at the midpoint of the 70th week of Daniel (3.5 years through the tribulation):

“And he [Antichrist] 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.” (Daniel 9:27)

Christ then warned in verses 16-21 that “great tribulation” will begin after the abomination of desolation is set up:

“(16) Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: (17) Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: (18) Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. (19) And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! (20) But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: (21) For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” (Matthew 24:16-21)

Christ later proclaimed in the Olivet Discourse that the sun and moon shall darken (the signs preceding the Day of the Lord) immediately after the great tribulation ends:

Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:” (Matthew 24:29)

Therefore, Christ placed the start of the Day of the Lord after the end of the great tribulation and well past the midpoint of the tribulation.

The Sixth Seal

Similarly, the Book of Revelation does not mention the Day of the Lord until after the opening of the sixth seal. The opening of the sixth seal will lead to a change in the sun and the moon’s appearance like described in Joel 2:31 and Acts 2:20.

  • Unsurprising, Revelation 6:17 indicates that the Day of the Lord will arrive after the change in the sun and in the moon: “the great day of his wrath is come”:

“(12) And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; (13) And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. (14) And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. (15) And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; (16) And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: (17) For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?” (Revelation 6:12-17)

When Will the Day of the Lord Begin

Thus, the Day of the Lord cannot begin at the start of the tribulation. The Day of the Lord cannot even begin at the midpoint of the tribulation. The Day of the Lord will begin after the end of the great tribulation and after the opening of the sixth seal.

A Day with the Lord & 1,000 Years

Some who try to guess when the Rapture and the tribulation will begin will use the concept that a Day with the Lord equals 1,000 years in their calculations. Those who promote this concept often cite Psalm 90 and 2 Peter 3:3-13, a chapter about the Day of the Lord. Here are the key parts from each text:

“(1) Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations. (2) Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. (3) Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men. (4) For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.” (Psalm 90:1-4)”

“(8) But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. (9) The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. (10) But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” (2 Peter 3:8-10)

If you read these passages closely, you’ll notice that each passage compares a day with the Lord to 1,000 years. The recognition that a comparison is being made is critical because it means that a direct statement that “a day for the Lord equals 1,000 years” is not being made.

The author of Psalm 90 and the Apostle Peter used the comparison to convey the notion that the Lord’s timing is entirely different from our sense of timing. The Lord is eternal while our lives are relatively short, so a long time to us is not a long time to Him.

Therefore, I would caution you against accepting the calculations of date setters who equate a Day with the Lord to 1,000 years.

Final Thoughts

The onset of the Day of the Lord is often a misunderstood topic. I hope this article helped you to better understand when the Day of the Lord can actually begin.

Remember, the Day of the Lord cannot start at any moment or at the start of the tribulation. Many things still need to take place before we see the signs that relate to the onset of the Day of the Lord.

Do You Want to Study Bible Prophecy? Get My Free eBook!

Join my mailing list, and as a special welcome gift, I’ll send you my eBook guide to studying Bible prophecy. You’ll also get my latest articles and updates delivered to your inbox.

End of Post Newsletter Form Signup

Your privacy is valued. For more information, please read the Privacy Policy.

Prophecy Proof Insights Guide to Studying Bible Prophecy

Note

  1. I believe the Day of Christ and the Day of the Lord represent the same event but from different perspectives:
  • The Day of Christ relates to the righteous perspective as the righteous will become blameless and will be rewarded at that time (Philemon 1:6, 10, Philippians 2:14-17, 1 Corinthians 1:7-8, 1 Corinthians 5:5, 2 Corinthians 1:14).
  • Meanwhile, the Day of the Lord relates more to the punishment of the wicked (1 Thessalonians 5:2-3).
Share This Post
Wayne Croley
Wayne Croley

Hi! I’ve studied and written about Bible prophecy since I was a teenager. My goal is to make Bible prophecy easy for you to understand while avoiding the sensationalism seen elsewhere. I am the author of several end time books, including Prophecy Proof Insights on the End Times, a comprehensive book about the end times. I hold an M.B.A. and degrees in Managerial Economics and Political Science.

29 Comments

Leave a Reply to eagletCancel Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  1. Hi Wayne,

    Check this out:

    Daniel 9:26-27,

    26 “And after the sixty-two weeks
    Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself;
    And THE PEOPLE OF THE PRINCE who is to come
    Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary.
    The end of it shall be with a flood,
    And till the end of the war desolations are determined.
    27 Then HE shall confirm a covenant with many for one week;
    But in the middle of the week
    He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering.
    And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate,
    Even until the consummation, which is determined,
    Is poured out on the desolate.”

    Notice the Capitalized words? The HE here does not pertain to the prince with his people who will destroy the temple (70 AD). We cannot use HE as pertaining to THE PEOPLE OF THE PRINCE. The HE here does not pertains to the antichrist either, it pertains to Jesus who will abolished the sacrifice, because He is the ultimate and once and for all sacrifice, any other sacrifices to any temple that will be done by men is not acceptable anymore to God. The abomination here that will cause desolation is the crucifixion of Jesus Christ at the wing of the temple. What could be more abominable than the Son of God being crucified?

    The first 3.5 years is the confirming of the covenant throughout Jesus Christ’s ministry during His time on earth. The last 3.5 years could be fulfilled either at the time of the great tribulation or at the end of the millennium. Daniel 9 talks about the fate of his people, the Israelites/Jews. Jesus Christ will deal with them both in the great tribulation and at the end of the millennium.

    It is highly probable that the last 3.5 years will happen at the end of the millennium. There were no clear mention of a 3.5 years great tribulation in the scriptures. All are just speculations and assumptions. All I know is that the Tribulation will be cut short so that there will be people, including jews, that will survive and will live on through the millennium.

    • The abomination that will cause desolation that Jesus warns of in the olivet discourse about Daniel is in Daniel 11, not Daniel 9:27. It is in Daniel 11 that the Antichrist is clearly mentioned and the abomination that will cause desolation that he will do during the tribulation.

      • Hi Wayne,

        Daniel 9:26-27 KJV

        26 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 desolation(S) are determined.

        27 And he, THE PEOPLE OF THE PRINCE, 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.

        Does this sound correct?

        The people of the prince here are the assyrian army under the roman command of General Titus. This happened in the revolt of the jews and in the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD. After this, Jerusalem was laid desolate from that time on and all the jews were scattered and went in diaspora.

        Here is the context of the entire Chapter of Daniel 9:

        24 Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people (Israel) 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 (Jesus Christ).

        I don’t know where the Antichrist got involved in this scripture.

        It is also in this scripture I think that the Seventy weeks span up to the end of the millennium and the last 3.5 years happens also at the end of it.

        We know in Revelation 20 that at the end of the millennium, the nations will be deceived again, and the nations pertained here are the descendants of Remnant Israel and Gentiles that survived from Armageddon.

        The end of sins, the reconciliation for iniquity, the finishing of transgression, and bringing in of EVERLASTING righteousness, will only be fully completed with finality at the end of the millennium, at the great white throne judgement, at the beginning of the New Heaven and New Earth.

        • You are on the right track eaglet. The “He” is Jesus and He was cut off in the mid of the week, 7 years. With that He stopped the sacrifices. There is no Antichrist, as you said, he is calling Jesus the Antichrist.

          Jesus last part of the week, 3 1/2″ years, will be fulfilled through the two witnesses or Himself at the place of safety.

          As far as the Day of the Lord…..it shall be 30 days long. This is the era of time at the end of the 1290, before the 45 days leasing up to the 1335. This is after the seventh trumpet sounding at the end of tribulation, the 1260 days.

          The end is coming very soon. If you want to know more of God’s true words, reply.

          • The Day of the Lord is the Millennium.

            The Cut short period, which is the Great Tribulation, Bowls Judgement, and the Second Advent, is the first part of the millennium.

            The last 3.5 years, which is the Trumpet Judgement, The White Throne Judgement, is the last part of the Millennium, the end of the age.

            The New Jerusalem, the New Heaven and New Earth is the eternity.

  2. Also, at the end of the sixth bowl, Revelations 16:15. Toss is is when the resurrection / rapture event happens.

    • Hi Chris,

      Yes I believe the Rapture / Resurrection will happen at the end of the Sixth Bowl Judgement. Here is why:

      Revelation 21:1-2
      21 And I saw a NEW HEAVEN and a NEW EARTH: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
      2 And I John saw the holy city, NEW JERUSALEM, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a BRIDE adorned for her HUSBAND.

      Revelation 21:9-10
      9 And there came unto me ONE OF THE SEVEN ANGELS which had the SEVEN VIALS full of the SEVEN LAST PLAGUES, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the BRIDE, the Lamb’s WIFE.
      10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the HOLY JERUSALEM, descending out of heaven from God,

      Revelation 16:12-16
      12 And the SIXTH ANGEL poured out his VIAL upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.
      13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
      14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
      15 Behold, I come as a THIEF. BLESSED is he that WATCHETH, and KEEPETH his GARMENTS, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
      16 And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue ARMAGEDDON.

      To add more sense and logic to it without the twisting and the allegories, here is another scripture that equally has the same essence and substance of the latter:

      Revelation 16:17-19
      17 And the SEVENTH ANGEL poured out his VIAL into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done.
      18 And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great.
      19 And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and GREAT BABYLON came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.

      Revelation 17:12-16
      1 And there came ONE OF THE SEVEN ANGELS which had the SEVEN VIALS, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the GREAT WHORE that sitteth upon many waters:

      BOOOM!!!! There you have it.

      The BRIDE will be snatch and stolen by the THIEF right between the sixth vial judgement and the seventh vial judgement. After this, Jesus Christ will deal with the Great Whore(Revelation 3:3, “Remember therefore what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. If therefore you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.”)

      The Revelation of Jesus Christ according to His own Word.

      God help us all in this very deceptive end times.

      • What exactly do you think Rev. 14:14-16 is, pray tell, if it is not the rapture? It comes before the bowl judgments.

        • Hi Connie,

          Don’t look at Revelation in chronological Order. You have to look at it segment after segment and see if each segment comprises the entirety of a single major event that is just part of the entire end time prophetic timeline.

          Revelation 14 for instance talks about the harvest plan of God. First, the harvest of the 144,000 Bride/Virgins (v. 1-5). together with the Dead in Christ/Wedding Guests/Bridesmaids? (v. 13). Last, the harvest that happens in armaggeddon. But those who died in this war will not rise first, they will have to wait for the white throne judgement at the end of the millennium, only the beast and the false prophet were the ones thrown in the lake of fire prior to start of the millennium.

          Notice also the mention of Babylon the Great that felled. So this is key to say that Rev. 14 talks about the event from right after the sixth bowl judgement, then to the punishment of the Great Whore, and up to the Second Coming of Christ. This is entirely the harvest period from the last part of the great tribulation up to the Second Coming of Christ.

          The Son of Man sitting on the clouds (v. 14) matches the description of the rapture/resurrection event of 1 Thes. 4:16-17, and The Ascension of Christ which the angel said to the apostles that Jesus will come back the same way He had gone up to Heaven.

          What puzzles me is in v. 6 where it mentioned the preaching of the everlasting gospel which comes after the mention of the 144,000 and before the declaration of the hour (2,000 years? 1 John 2:18) of judgement, the fall of Babylon, and the mark of the beast.

          This made me think that the 144k’s resurrection could have been those men who have risen from the tomb when Jesus Christ resurrected (Mat. 27:52-54).

          It is mentioned also that the 144k are the firstfruits, and this fits perfectly to what 1 Cor. 15:23 described about the order of resurrection.

          With this thought, Rev. 14 narration could probably span from the resurrection of Jesus Christ up to His Second Coming.

          And the Bride is the 144k who rose right after Jesus Christ resurrection (Rev. 14:4); Those who died for the Lord (Rev 14:12-13) from that time onwards up to the end of the great tribulation are the Dead in Christ which are the Wedding Guests or Bridesmaids.

          What do you think?

          • I don’t happen to agree that Revelation is not chronological in its order. I think God is a God of order and would not try to deliberately make it confusing. There are some parenthetical chapters to fill in history, but for me those seem easily recognizable as such from the context. As a whole I do not see how it is not chronological given that when you take it chronologically, it makes perfect sense and agrees with the rest of Scripture. Especially since after the Rev. 14 rapture it says that God then puts everyone else into His wrath, which is clearly announced several times as being the vial judgments. But you are free to disagree.

          • Try Ezekiel 38 & 39, this is not chronological.

            Ezekiel 38 happens at the end of the millennium which Revelation 20 mentioned also Gog & Magog. The key words are unwalled city, living in peace & safety, and had recovered from war (armageddon).

            While Ezekiel 39 happens at Armageddon. the key words here are the great supper that was prepared by God for the carrion birds which is described also in Rev. 19. Seven years of burning fuel and Seven months of burying the dead is plausible only to happen after armageddon and before the start of the millennium. Ezekiel 39 happening at the end of millennium definitely is not plausible because right after Satan (Gog) is defeated and thrown in the lake of fire, the great white throne judgement comes right after.

            Check out Wayne’s article on Ezekiel 38 & 39, and the insights of some of the commentators.

          • I agree that Ezekiel 38 and 39 are in reverse order, but the information encapsulated within those chapters makes it clear where they fall. Revelation on the other hand makes perfect sense when one takes it in chronological order (with the exception of the historical narrative chapters of Israel, Babylon, and the beast.) I see no need to rearrange it when it makes perfect sense as is. On the other hand Ez. 38 & 39 do not make sense in the order they are in, and as I said, reading them makes it clear where they fall. If you can’t see the logical sense of the chronology of Revelation, that is not my problem, for I can, so I will continue to believe it is chronological and that the rapture occurs where Paul said it would, at the last trump. You can continue to believe as you want as well.

          • How can you know rev 14 is the time of the rapture when it is imminent? Could’ve happened any time during from pentecost,to the end of the church age.

          • Because it isn’t imminent. Nowhere is it taught in Scripture that it is imminent. That may be a theological teaching that some preach, but it isn’t based on Scripture. Provide me with a verse or two that says it is imminent, if you disagree. Christ told us over and over to watch for the signs and to not be deceived.

        • Hi Connie,

          I will go back again to the method of understanding Revelation by looking at it happening in chronological order from Chapter 1 to 22, only if you can explain to me this:

          Revelation 11:7 (The Chapter that is almost in the middle of the Book of Revelation)

          – Now when they have finished their testimony, the BEAST THAT COMES UP FROM THE ABYSS will attack them, and overpower and kill them. (this is not history)

          Question:
          1. When and where in scriptures that the beast will come up or out of the abyss or bottomless pit?
          2. How many times was Satan bounded in the abyss or bottomless pit?
          3. Are Abyss and Bottomless Pit the same place and could also mean prison? Can Satan do anything in Prison?
          4. Is Satan the Red Dragon? Does dragon can be considered as a beast?
          5. Can the beasts that came out of the earth and the sea can be understood as coming out of the abyss? Could earth mean kingdoms and Sea as people/multitudes?
          6. Is this right? Satan=Dragon=Beast= Antichrist from time immemorial=Lucifer=Morning Star=Angel.
          7. Was Peter really is Satan when Jesus said to him ” Get thee behind me Satan”?
          8. Was Judas became Satan when he betrayed Jesus?

          These are the questions that will somehow makes you think that Rev. 11 is right at the end of the millennium, and Rev. 12 is the start of another angle of the entire prophetic end time line.

          This is how I segmented the Book of Revelation, considering your idea that there are some chapters that has historical narrative inserts in every major segments which I agree:

          Chapter 1 – Exhortation of and About the Revelator (Jesus Christ)

          Chapter 2 to 11 – the birth of the Church up to the end of the millennium, and the things that are happening in Heaven at the same time.

          Chapter 12 to 21 – the birth of Jesus Christ up to the end of the millennium (30 or 33 years longer than the above), things that are happening mostly on earth only.

          Chapter 22 – Exhortations and Admonitions of the Revelator (Jesus Christ)

          Please help me change my view as I have been presenting this also to other websites. I don’t want to fall in to becoming Heretical and I might mislead other people, though non so far had accepted my view.

          My intention is to somehow help to contribute in putting the puzzle pieces together, and I have no intention to debate and brag about the knowledge that I have and hopefully it is guided by the Holy Spirit.

          I am a young prophecy student and not a prophecy teacher, so I am teachable.

          God Bless us.

          • If we think that the beast that come up from the abyss is the antichrist man indwelt by satan the antichrist angel, then where in scriptures does it says that there was a certain man bounded also in the abyss that will be released at an appointed time? Is there any abysses other than the abyss mentioned in Rev. 11, Rev. 13, and Rev.20? Are these chapters future or history?

          • I am not trying to force you to see things my way. I just disagree with the way you interpret them. The easiest way for you to see what I believe, if you really want to know, is to go to my website and follow what I have written in my Bible study. You are free to disagree, as I said, so it is your choice to go there or not. As it is a Bible study, it is in small increments, verse by verse or a passage at a time. You can jump to whatever passage you want to read via the archives if you don’t want to go through the entire thing, which is length, but as I teach in an accumulative manner (I don’t repeat something I’ve taught earlier)it is easier to understand if you do go through in order. It would be much easier than me trying to answer all of your questions. My blog is at http://endtimesstudies.blogspot.com/. And just to clarify, when I use the word history, I am using it not from our perspective which would indicate all things past, but from God’s perspective where everything in our past, present, and future makes up the history of a topic God is discussing. So when I speak of the history of Babylon in Rev., I mean the entire world history, past, present, and future. I see God giving us information in its historical scope from beginning to end. But still I see there is an order to Seals, Trumpets, and then Vials as the trumpets are IN the seventh seal, and the vials are IN the seventh trumpet. Once can’t precede the other if one is included within the last of each.

  3. Hi Prophecy Proof Insights,

    Thanks for the article.

    I’m making a Revelation timeline on adobe illustrator (using expandable artboards) and I currently have my Tribulation starting at the beginning of the 70th week (7 years), Great tribulation starting at the midpoint, and now (after reading your article) the day of the LORD starting after that. What scripture can you point to that says the Day of the Lord starts after the midpoint/Great tribulation? I didn’t quite understand. Also, if the Day of the Lord starts at the opening of the 6th seal, when does the two witnesses’s ministry begin? They can’t start their ministry at the midpoint AND have their ministry start after the 6th trumpet. Please clarify.

    Thank you,

    T.Newman

    • I’m guessing Wayne is very busy as he hasn’t been able to get back to you, so I may be able to help. If you look back at his article, you will see that the verse that clarifies that the Day of the Lord starts after the great tribulation is cut short is in Matt. 24:29. It says that immediately after the great tribulation the celestial signs that Joel, Isaiah, and Acts all designate as the signs that herald the coming of the Day of the Lord are seen. Thus the Day of the Lord must come after the great tribulation since the signs that come before the Day of the Lord are not seen until after the great tribulation is cut short.

      The two witnesses start their ministry at the midpoint of Daniel’s 70th week. “Elijah” and his partner come before the Day of the Lord, but that begins after the great tribulation is cut short, so there is no problem. Revelation is mostly chronological, but there are passages that overlap each other time-wise. The witnesses are one of those passages. Their ministry begins at the mid-point and ends when the sixth trumpet ends. The celestial signs mentioned above come somewhere during their ministry. I hope that helps until Wayne can get back to you.

    • Matthew 24:29 references the time period just after the great tribulation has ended. The events Christ described at that point are consistent with what you’d see near the start of the Day of the Lord. Therefore, we can say that the Day of the Lord will not begin until after the great tribulation is complete.

      The ministry of the two witnesses should start around the midway point of the seventieth week of Daniel.

  4. My viewpoint on the Day of the Lord has shifted since this article. I think Joel 3:13 can actually be linked with Revelation 14:14-20.

  5. Joel tells us precisely when the day of The Lord begins:
    Please read Joel 3:9-15.

    THE DOL “will be near in the valley of decision,” which is Armageddon in the valley of Jehosaphat.

    It also is preceded by the moon turning blood red (Joel 2:31)

    Compare Joel 3:13 with Rev. 14:14-16

  6. Thanks! I’m glad you see the logic.

    I’m actually expecting a lot of people to resist this explanation. This is a hot-buttoned issue with people.