God's Purpose For
The Tribulation
by Dr. Thomas Ice
Over the years I have done dozens of radio and television
interview shows which include a time where listeners are permitted to call in
with their questions about Bible prophecy. Since I am director of an
organization that researches, teaches, and defends the pretribulational rapture
teaching, I get many questions and comments relating to that subject. It is not
hard to detect questions and comments that flow from an individual who is
biblically informed verses those who speak from a position of mere human whim
or opinion. The same is true of written correspondence. I have found that when
it comes to the issue of the tribulation so many have not taken the time to let
the Bible define the meaning and purpose for that future period of time.
A common statement made by some is as follows: "I believe
that the church will go through the tribulation because the Bible says that we will
suffer for our faith." The problem with such a statement is that while it
may appear to have the veneer of biblical correctness, at core it betrays a
lack of understanding of God's purpose for the tribulation. Certainly the Bible
teaches that all through out the church age Believers will suffer persecution.
This is taught by such passages as John 16:33b, "In the world you have
tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." And in 2
Timothy 3:12 "Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be
persecuted." The question is will the church experience the trials of the
tribulation? I have found that when a person is knowledgeable of what the Bible
says is God's purpose for the tribulation, or any issue for that matter, then a
very high percentage of those people will come to believe that the church will
be taken in the rapture before the tribulation. What is God's purpose for the
tribulation?
Start Of The Tribulation
First, we need to know that the tribulation in Bible prophecy is the
period of time that begins with the signing of a covenant between Israel and
the antichrist and ends seven years later at the second coming of Jesus Christ.
The most extensive biblical comments on the tribulation are found in the
writings of John, specifically in Revelation 6-19. In these chapters, John
provides a detailed exposition of the tribulation days. Daniel's "70
weeks," prophesied in Daniel 9:24-27 are the framework within which the
tribulation or the 70th week occurs. The seven-year period of Daniel's 70th
week provides the time span with which a whole host of descriptives are
associated. Some of those descriptive terms include: tribulation, great
tribulation, day of the Lord, day of wrath, day of distress, day of trouble,
time of Jacob's trouble, day of darkness and gloom, and wrath of the Lamb.
Judgment Nature Of The Tribulation
Second, God's basic purpose for the tribulation is that it be a
time of judgment, while at the same time, He will hold forth the gospel of
grace. This will precede Christ's glorious 1,000 year reign from David's throne
in Jerusalem. Judgment, or God's wrath, is needed to put down the rebellion of
mankind in preparation for Christ's reign of peace upon earth during the
millennium.
The Goals Of The Tribulation
Third, while a number of goals for the tribulation could be given,
there are a least three specific major purposes. Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum lists
them as follows:
Gentile Judgment
Before the Lord can personally rule on earth in the Person of
Jesus Christ He must first judge the world in order to prepare it for His
righteous rule. Dr. Fruchtenbaum says that the first purpose for the
tribulation is,
ĄTo make an end of wickedness and wicked ones (Isaiah 13:9;
24:19-20)--The first purpose for the tribulation is seen to be a punishment in
history upon the whole world for its sins against God, in a way similar to that
of the global flood in Noah's days (Matthew 24:37-39).[1]
Deuteronomy 30:7 tells us that God will "inflict all these
curses on your enemies and on those who hate you, who persecuted you."
This will take place during the tribulation and will be retribution to the
nations for how they have treated the Jews during the last 2,000 years. This
purpose does not encompass the church.
World-Wide Evangelism
The seven-year tribulation will be a time of phenomenal
evangelistic outreach. It will be a time unlike any previous period of history.
Dr. Fruchtenbaum explains:
ĄTo bring about a world-wide revival--This purpose is given and
fulfilled in Revelation 7:1-17. During the first half of the tribulation, God
will evangelize the world by the means of the 144,000 Jews and thus fulfill the
prophecy found in Matthew 24:14.[2]
In addition to the 144,000 Jewish evangelists, there will be normal
evangelism taking place like we see today. Further, the Two Witnesses will
provide an evangelistic witness to Israel. Finally, at the mid-point of the
tribulation Revelation 14 tells us that God Himself will use angels to preach
the gospel and warn "earth dwellers" not to take the mark of the
beast-666.
The three angelic announcements are as follows: First, an angel
will preach "an eternal gospel . . . to those who live on the earth, and
to every nation and tribe and tongue and people" (Revelation 14:6).
Second, the next angel will make the following pronouncement: "Fallen,
fallen is Babylon the great, she who has made all the nations drink of the wine
of the passion of her immorality" (Revelation 14:8). Finally, the last
angelic proclamation will specifically warn every person on earth not to take
the mark of the beast, since doing so will result in their eternal punishment
in the Lake of Fire. "If anyone worships the beast and his image, and
receives a mark on his forehead or upon his hand . . . he will be tormented
with fire and brimstone . . . forever and ever" (Revelation 14:9-11). This
tribulation purpose also does not include the church.
Conversion of Israel
One of the most glorious and important purposes of the tribulation
will be the conversion of Israel. Dr. Fruchtenbaum tell us,
ĄTo break the power of the holy people--Israel--Finally, the
tribulation will be a time in which God, through evil agencies, prepares Israel
for her conversion and acknowledgment that Jesus is their Messiah, resulting in
the second coming of Christ.[3]
The Bible teaches us that God will use the tribulation to bring
His elect people to faith in Jesus as their Messiah. When we put together the
biblical information it appears that God will accomplish this goal in the following
way: First, the Lord will return Israel to the land before the tribulation, the
time of God's wrath. "I shall bring you out from the peoples and gather
you from the lands where you are scattered, with a mighty hand and with an
outstretched arm and with wrath poured out (Ezekiel 20:34). The regathering
before the tribulation is what our Lord has been doing since 1948 with the
modern state of Israel.
Once the tribulation begins He "shall make you pass under the
rod, and I shall bring you into the bond of the covenant; and I shall purge
from you the rebels and those who transgress against Me; I shall bring them out
of the land where they sojourn, but they will not enter the land of Israel.
Thus you will know that I am the Lord" (Ezekiel 20:37-38). This tells us
that the unbelieving Jews ("the rebels") will be removed during the
tribulation.
In an interesting passage that speaks of "My Associate,"
which is an obvious prophetic reference to Jesus The Messiah (Zechariah
13:7-9), Zechariah gives us a numeric ratio that will be purged. "And it
will come about in all the land," Declares the Lord, "That two parts
in it will be cut off and perish; But the third will be left in it. And I will
bring the third part through the fire, Refine them as silver is refined, And
test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, And I will answer them;
I will say, 'They are My people,' And they will say, 'The Lord is my
God.'" (Zechariah 13:8-9) Therefore, we learn that two-thirds of Israel
will be purged through the fire of the tribulation, leaving the one-third elect
who will be converted to Jesus as their Messiah. Thus, "all Israel will be
saved; just as it is written, 'The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will
remove ungodliness from Jacob. And this is My covenant with them, When I take
away their sins'" (Romans 11:26-27). What a glorious day that will be!
Israel will be converted to Jesus as their Messiah resulting in the second
coming, which will in turn give rise the millennial reign of Christ. The church
is no where to be found in these tribulational activities.
Conclusion
While many people think the tribulation will involve the church,
the Bible does not provide support for such a notion. Instead, Scripture
informs us of at least a three-fold purpose for the coming tribulation, none of
which involves the church. The New Testament teaches that the church will be
taken at the rapture to be with the Lord before the tribulation begins, because
God has not destined His bride for His wrath (Romans 5:9; 1 Thessalonians 1:10;
5:9; Revelation 3:10). Other groups of redeemed individuals will go through the
tribulation, but not Christ's bride, the church.
Part II
God's Purpose for Israel During The Tribulation
Purging Out The Rebel
One of the major Divine purposes for the tribulation in relation
to Israel is the conversion of the Jewish remnant to faith in Jesus as their
Messiah. This will take place throughout the tribulation, but by the end of the
seven-year period the entire number of the elect remnant will become converted
to Jesus. That number is likely a third of the Jewish people as noted in
Zechariah 13:9. "And I will bring the third part through the fire, refine
them as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested. They will call on
My name, and I will answer them; I will say, 'They are My people,' and they
will say, 'The Lord is my God.'" As part of the process of bringing the
Jewish remnant to faith Zechariah 13:8 speaks of a purging out of the non-elect
Jewish element from the nation. "'And it will come about in all the land,'
declares the Lord, 'that two parts in it will be cut off and perish; but the
third will be left in it.'" The Old Testament prophets speak frequently of
the purging out of the Jewish non-elect during the tribulation.
Ezekiel 20:33-38 is a major passage that speaks of a Jewish
regathering to their ancient land, which must take place before the
tribulation, in preparation for the purging of the non-elect Israelites called
in this passage "the rebels" (Ezek. 20:38). "'As I live,'
declares the Lord God, 'surely with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm
and with wrath poured out, I shall be king over you. And I shall bring you out
from the peoples and gather you from the lands where you are scattered, with a
mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out; and I shall
bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I shall enter into
judgment with you face to face. As I entered into judgment with your fathers in
the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you,'
declares the Lord God. 'And I shall make you pass under the rod, and I shall
bring you into the bond of the covenant; and I shall purge from you the rebels
and those who transgress against Me'" (Ezek. 20:33-38a). The phrase
"to pass under the rod" is one of evaluation and separation. The
purging process will result in removal of the rebel, leaving the believing
remnant who will then be brought "into the bond of the covenant" (Ezek.
20:37).
In a similar vein, two chapters later, Ezekiel receives another
revelation about a future regathering of national Israel (Ezek. 22:17-22). This
time, the Lord is "going to gather you into the midst of Jerusalem" (Ezek.
22:19). Like the metallurgist, the Lord will use the fire of the tribulation to
purge out the unfaithful. The Lord is going to "gather you [Israel] and
blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and you will be melted in the midst of
it" (Ezek. 22:21). In this passage, "My wrath" depicts the time
of the tribulation. It also follows here that the nation must be regathered
before that event can take place. The outcome of this event will be that the
nation "will know that I, the Lord, have poured out My wrath on you"
(Ezek. 22:22). Israel is back in her land, awaiting the purging fire of the
tribulation that will remove the non-elect and reveal the remnant.
Again we read of "the time of Jacob's trouble" in
Jeremiah 30:7. It is said to compare to the sorrows that one faces in
childbirth (Jer. 30:6), "but he will be saved from it" (Jer. 30:7,
11). The remnant will be saved through this time of trouble, which is clearly
the tribulation. The Lord will chasten that nation of Israel during this time.
"Only I will not destroy you completely. But I will chasten you justly,
and will by no means leave you unpunished" (Jer. 30:11). This chastisement
will result in Israel's conversion: "And you shall be My people, And I
will be your God" (Jer. 30:22). Jeremiah says that these things will occur
"in the latter days" (Jer. 30:24).
The prophecies of Daniel 12 are set within the timeframe of the
tribulation (Dan. 12:1). "Many will be purged, purified and refined; but
the wicked will act wickedly, and none of the wicked will understand, but those
who have insight will understand" (Dan. 12:10). We see in this passage the
continued theme of purging out the non-elect Jews during the tribulation but
also see the rescue or salvation of the elect. These events are said to occur
during "the end time" (Dan. 12:9).
A number of other passages speak of the need to refine the Jewish
people, often in association with the city of Jerusalem (Isa. 1:22, 25; 48:10; Jer.
6:27-30; 9:7; Mal. 3:2-3). Arnold Fruchtenbaum tells us, "As a purified,
believing nation, they will then turn to the Lord. Here again he speaks of
worldwide regathering in unbelief in preparation for a specific future
judgment, but the purpose of the judgment is to bring them to national
repentance." [1]
The Condition for The Second Coming
Many Christians are surprised to learn that the second coming is a
rescue event. Jesus will return to planet earth in order to rescue the
believing Jewish remnant that is on the verge of being destroyed during the
Campaign of Armageddon. I think this is what Paul speaks of in Romans 10 when
he tell us, "'Whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved.'
How then shall they call upon Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall
they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a
preacher?" (Rom. 10:13-14). In other words, the Jewish people are going to
have to be Believers in Jesus as their Messiah in order to be rescued by Him at
the second advent. This is exactly what will happen.
The Old and New Testaments teach that before Christ can return to
earth for His millennial kingdom the nation of Israel must be converted to
Jesus as their Messiah and call on Him to save them. This is taught throughout
the Bible (Lev. 26:40-42; Jer. 3:11-18; Hosea 5:15; Zech. 12:10; Matt. 23:37-39;
Acts 3:19-21).
Hosea 5:15 tells us, "I will go away and return to My place
until they acknowledge their guilt and seek My face; in their affliction they
will earnestly seek Me." "Until" tells us that the nation will
one day turn to the Lord, as does the following context. Jesus Himself spoke an
important "until" to the nation in Matthew 23:39 when He said,
"For I say to you, from now on you shall not see Me until you say,
'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!'" The Apostle Peter
tells the Jewish nation that they will not see Jesus again until they:
"Repent therefore and return, that your sins may be wiped away, in order
that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; and that He
may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you, whom heaven must receive until
the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of
His holy prophets from ancient time" (Acts 3:19-21). "This, then, is
the twofold basis of the Second Coming; Israel must confess her national sin."
explains Fruchtenbaum, "and then plead for Messiah to return, to mourn for
Him as one mourns for an only son." [2]
The National Conversion of Israel
The Bible teaches that one day the nation of Israel will return to
the Lord their God. This will occur by the end of the tribulation and is the
purpose for the time of Jacob's trouble. Many passages teach the future
conversion of the Jews to Jesus as their Messiah (Psa. 79:1-13; 80:1-19; Isa.
53:1-9; 59:20-21; 61:8-9; 64:1-12; Jer. 30:3-24; 31:31-40; 32:37-40; 50:4-5; Ezek.
11:19-20; 16:60-63; 34:25-26; 36:24-32; 37:21-28; Hosea 6:1-3; Joel 2:28-32; Zech.
9:11; 12:10-13:9; Rom. 11:25-27). Hosea 6:1-2 is one of the most interesting
passages on the future conversion of the nation of Israel. "Come, let us
return to the LORD. For He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has wounded us,
but He will bandage us. He will revive us after two days; He will raise us up on
the third day that we may live before Him."
Conclusion
The Bible clearly teaches that the time of Jacob's trouble (the
tribulation), in which the non-elect Jews are to be purged out and removed,
while the remaining believing remnant will the saved (both spiritually and
physically), did not occur through events relating to the destruction of
Jerusalem in A.D. 70. Sorry Mr. DeMar, but try as you might, through your
naturalist interpretations, you cannot not ram, cram and jam these supernatural
events into the first century. These texts of Scripture just do not fit!
Instead, they require a future fulfillment for a literal nation of Israel.
Fruchtenbaum says, "Only by faith in the Son of Man can Israel be
regenerated. Only by calling upon the Name of the Lord can Israel be saved
spiritually. Only by the return of the Son of Man can Israel be saved
physically." Yet, that is exactly what will occur in the future in the
tribulation.[3] The Lord is setting the stage for these future events since He
has brought His chosen people back to their land in anticipation of both the
purging of the non-elect and the redemption of the elect. Maranatha!
References:
[1] Arnold Fruchtenbaum, Footsteps of the Messiah: A Study of
the Sequence of Prophetic Events, (Tustin, CA: 1982, pp. 122-23.
[2] Fruchtenbaum, Footsteps, pp. 123-25.
[3] Fruchtenbaum, Footsteps, pp. 125-26.
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