It seems that Matthew did not record Jesus’ answer to the first question about the future destruction of the temple buildings, whereas Luke did in his Gospel (see Luke 21:12-24). In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus immediately began speaking of the signs that would precede His return and the end of the age:

And Jesus answered and said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you . For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many. And you will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs” (Matt. 24:4-8, emphasis added).

It is clear from the start of this sermon that Jesus believed His first-century disciples could very well be alive during the events that lead up to His return. Notice how many times He used the personal pronoun you. Jesus used the personal pronoun you at least twenty times in the 24^th chapter alone, so His listeners would have all believed that they would live to see what Jesus foretold.

We know, of course, that every disciple who listened to Jesus that day died long ago. We should not conclude, however, that Jesus was deceiving them, but that He Himself did not know the exact time of His return (see Matt. 24:36). It was indeed quite possible then for those who heard His Olivet Discourse to be alive at His return.

Jesus’ foremost concern was that His disciples would not be deceived by false Christs, as so many will be during the last days. We know that the antichrist himself will be a false Christ, deceiving much of the world. They will consider him to be a wonderful savior.

Jesus said that there will be wars, famines and earthquakes, but He indicated that those events are not signs of His return, but only “the beginning of birth pangs.” It would be safe to say that those signs have been occurring for the last two thousand years. However, Jesus next speaks of something that has not yet occurred.

Looking back over the last 2,000 years, we realize that Jesus did not return as soon as the apostles had hoped. Even back in their day, there were those who were beginning to doubt that Jesus would ever return in light of how long it had been since His departure. As Peter’s earthly life drew to a close, for example (see 2 Pet. 1:13-14), Jesus still had not come back, and so Peter addressed those with doubting thoughts in his final letter:

Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.” For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But the present heavens and earth by His word are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up (2 Pet. 3:3-10).

Peter affirmed that Jesus’ delay was due to His love and mercy—He wants to give more time for people to repent. But He also affirmed that there was absolutely no doubt Jesus would return. When He does, He will come in great wrath.

Scripture is also very clear, as we will see, that Christ’s wrathful return will be preceded by years of unprecedented worldwide tribulation and the pouring out of God’s wrath upon the wicked. Much of the subject matter of the book of Revelation covers that future period of time. As we will see later in our study, Scripture indicates that there will be seven years of future tribulation. There is no doubt that the Rapture of the church takes place at some point within or near those seven years.

Jesus next more fully elaborated to His disciples the importance of not being misled by reports of false Christs:

“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe him. For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told you in advance. If therefore they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go forth, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them. For just as the lightning comes from the east, and flashes even to the west, so shall the coming of the Son of Man be. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather” (Matt. 24:23-28).

Notice again Jesus’ many uses of the personal pronoun you . His audience on the Mount of Olives would have expected to live to see the rise of false Christs and false prophets who would perform great miracles. And they would have expected to see Jesus return in the sky like lightning.

Of course, the danger of falling away at that time will be very great, because persecution against believers will be so horrific and false Christs and false prophets will be so convincing due to their miracles. That is why Jesus repeatedly warned His disciples about what would occur just prior to His return. He did not want them to be misled like so many will be. True and steadfast believers will wait for Jesus to return in the sky like lightning, whereas those who are not His true followers will be drawn to false Christs like vultures are drawn to a carcass in the wilderness.

One other interesting passage from Daniel that we have not yet considered is found in the final thirteen verses of his amazing book. They are words spoken by an angel to Daniel. I have quoted it below along with my bracketed comments:

Now at that time Michael [the angel], the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time [this would be the same distress of which Jesus spoke in Matthew 24:21]; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued [this could be a reference to the Judean flight or the rescue of believers at the Rapture]. And many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt [the resurrection of the righteous and the wicked]. And those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. [After their resurrection, the righteous will receive new bodies that will shine with God’s glory.] But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words and seal up the book until the end of time; many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase.” [The amazing advances in transportation and knowledge over the past century are seemingly fulfilling this foretelling.]

Then I, Daniel, looked and behold, two others were standing, one on this bank of the river, and the other on that bank of the river. And one said to the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, “How long will it be until the end of these wonders?” And I heard the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, as he raised his right hand and his left toward heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever that it would be for a time, times, and half a time [three-and-a-half years according to the deciphering revelation of Rev. 12:6 and 12:14]; and as soon as they finish shattering the power of the holy people, all these events will be completed. [Just as Daniel 7:25 told us that the saints would be given into the hands of the antichrist for three-and-a-half years, here it seems obvious that they are the final three-and-a-half years of the seven years of Tribulation. The end of all the events spoken of by the angel will occur when “the power of the holy people” is “shattered.”] As for me, I heard but could not understand; so I said, “My lord, what will be the outcome of these events?” And he said, “Go your way, Daniel, for these words are concealed and sealed up until the end time. Many will be purged, purified and refined [through tribulation, no doubt]; but the wicked will act wickedly, and none of the wicked will understand, but those who have insight will understand. And from the time that the regular sacrifice is abolished, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. [This should not be interpreted to be the time between those two events, because they both occur in the middle of the seven years. Rather, it should be interpreted that from the time those two events take place, it will be 1,290 days until something very significant occurs at the end. 1,290 days is 30 days more than three-and-a-half years of 360-day years, a time-period that is repeatedly mentioned in prophetic scripture of Daniel and Revelation. Why this extra thirty days is added is a matter of speculation. To add to the mystery, the angel next told Daniel:] How blessed is he who keeps waiting and attains to the 1,335 days! [So now we have another forty-five days of mystery.] But as for you, go your way to the end; then you will enter into rest and rise again [Daniel’s own promised resurrection] for your allotted portion at the end of the age” (Dan. 12:1-13)

Obviously, something very wonderful will happen at the end of those extra 75 days! We’ll have to wait and see.

We know from reading the final chapters of Revelation that there are many events that apparently occur soon after Christ’s return, one being the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, concerning which an angel told John, “Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb” (Rev. 19:9). Perhaps this is the same blessing referred to by the angel who spoke to Daniel. If so, that glorious supper will occur about two-and-a-half months after Jesus returns.

Perhaps those seventy-five days are filled with other things that we know will occur according to what is written in the final chapters of Revelation, such as the casting of the antichrist and the false prophet in the lake of fire, the binding of Satan, and the setting up of the administration of Christ’s worldwide kingdom (see Rev. 19:20 – 20:4).

Some object to a Rapture near or at the end of the Tribulation on the basis that, biblically, the righteous are never punished with the unrighteous, proven by such examples as Noah, Lot, and the Israelites in Egypt.

Indeed, we certainly have good reason to believe that the righteous will not suffer God’s wrath during the seven-year Tribulation, as that would stand in contrast to many biblical precedents and promises (see, for example, 1 Thes. 1:9-10; 5:8).

Jesus, however, foretold of the great tribulation that the righteous will suffer during that time. It will be not at the hands of God, but at the hands of the unrighteous. Christians are not exempt from persecution—they are promised persecution. During the seven-year Tribulation, many believers will forfeit their lives (see Matt. 24:9; Rev. 6:9-11; 13:15; 16:5-6; 17:6; 18:24; 19:2). Many will be beheaded (see Rev. 20:4).

Thus, if every believer in a certain nation is martyred, there will be nothing to prevent God’s wrath from falling on everyone in that entire nation. And certainly if there are believers within a nation, God is able to protect them from His judgments as they fall on the wicked. During His judgments upon Egypt in Moses’ time, He proved that. God wouldn’t even let a dog bark against an Israelite, while judgment after judgment fell on the neighboring Egyptians (see Ex. 11:7). Similarly, we read in the book of Revelation of stinging locusts that will be released to afflict the wicked people of the earth for five months, but they are specifically not permitted to afflict the 144,000 Jewish bond-servants who will be sealed with a special mark on their foreheads (see Rev. 9:1-11).

Notice that even Jesus’ “thief in the night” analogy is contained within the context of His revealing many signs whereby His disciples would not be caught off guard by His return. So the “thief in the night” analogy cannot be rightly used to prove that none should expect to have any idea of when Jesus will return.

Both Paul and Peter used Jesus’ “thief in the night” analogy when they were writing about “the day of the Lord” (see 1 Thes. 5:2-4, 2 Pet. 3:10). They believed the analogy had application to Jesus’ wrathful return at or near the end of the seven-year Tribulation. Interestingly, however, Paul told his readers, “But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day should overtake you life a thief” (1 Thes. 5:4). He rightly interpreted Jesus’ analogy, realizing that those who were alert to the signs and obediently following Jesus were not in the darkness, so that Christ’s coming would not catch them by surprise at all. For them, Jesus would not come like a thief in the night. Only those in darkness would be surprised, which is exactly what Jesus taught. (See also Jesus’ use of the “thief in the night” phrase in Rev. 3:3 and in 16:15, where He uses it in reference to His coming at the battle of Armageddon).

From this point on in the Olivet Discourse, Jesus repeatedly admonished His disciples to be ready for His return. At the same time, He also told them how they could be ready, as He recited the parables of the unfaithful slave, the ten virgins, and the talents, and then foretold the judgment of the sheep and goats (all worth reading). In almost every case, He warned them that hell awaited those who were not ready for His return (see Matt. 24:50-51; 25:30, 41-46.) The way to be ready is to be found doing God’s will when He returns.^[1]

^[1] Clearly, for Jesus to warn His closest disciples of not being ready at His return, there existed the possibility of their not being ready. If He warned them of the penalty of eternal punishment for not being ready because of sin, then it was possible for them to forfeit their salvation because of sin. How this should speak to us of the importance of holiness, and the folly of those who say that it is impossible for believers to forfeit their salvation.

Just preceding the Eternal State, one final judgment will take place. All the unrighteous of all the ages will be bodily resurrected to stand before God’s throne and be judged according to their deeds (see Rev. 20:5, 11-15). Everyone who is now in Hades will be brought before that judgment, referred to as the “Great White Throne of Judgment,” and will then be cast into Gehenna, the lake of fire. This is referred to as “the second death” (Rev. 20:14).

The Eternal State begins with a passing away of the first heavens and earth, fulfilling Jesus’ two-thousand-year-old promise: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words shall not pass away” (Matt. 24:35).

Then God will create a new heavens and earth just as Peter foretold in his second epistle:

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, on account of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells (2 Pet. 3:10-13; see also Is. 65:17-18).

Finally, the New Jerusalem will come down out of heaven to the earth (see Rev. 21:1-2). Our minds can hardly begin to grasp the glories of that city, which covers an area one-half the size of the United States (see Rev. 21:16), or the wonders of that never-ending age. We will be living in the perfect society forever, under the rule of God, to the glory of Jesus Christ!

What, exactly, will be the rewards given to those who prove their love and devotion to Jesus?

Scripture speaks of at least two different rewards—praise from God, and more opportunity to serve Him. Both are revealed in Jesus’ parable of the nobleman:

He said therefore, “A certain nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then return. And he called ten of his slaves, and gave them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Do business with this until I come back.’ But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’ And it came about that when he returned, after receiving the kingdom, he ordered that these slaves, to whom he had given the money, be called to him in order that he might know what business they had done. And the first appeared, saying, ‘Master, your mina has made ten minas more.’ And he said to him, ‘Well done, good slave, because you have been faithful in a very little thing, be in authority over ten cities.’ And the second came, saying, ‘Your mina, master, has made five minas.’ And he said to him also, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’ And another came, saying, ‘Master, behold your mina, which I kept put away in a handkerchief; for I was afraid of you, because you are an exacting man; you take up what you did not lay down, and reap what you did not sow.’ He said to him, ‘By your own words I will judge you, you worthless slave. Did you know that I am an exacting man, taking up what I did not lay down, and reaping what I did not sow? Then why did you not put the money in the bank, and having come, I would have collected it with interest?’ And he said to the bystanders, ‘Take the mina away from him, and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’ And they said to him, ‘Master, he has ten minas already.’ ‘I tell you, that to everyone who has shall more be given, but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away. But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here, and slay them in my presence'” (Luke 19:12-27).

Obviously, Jesus is represented by the nobleman who was absent but who eventually returned. When Jesus returns, we will have to give account for what we did with the gifts, abilities, ministries, and opportunities He gave us, represented by the one mina given to each servant in the parable. If we’ve been faithful, we’ll be rewarded with praise from Him and be given authority to help Him rule and reign over the earth (see 2 Tim. 2:12; Rev. 2:26-27; 5:10; 20:6), represented by the cities each faithful servant was authorized to oversee in the parable.

From the decree of 445 B.C. by King Artaxerxes to rebuild Jerusalem, God allocated 490 special years of future history. But those 490 years were not sequential; rather, they were divided into two segments of 483 years and seven years. When the first 483 years of that allocated time were completed (on the year Jesus was crucified), the clock stopped. Daniel probably would have never dreamed that the clock would stop for what is now almost 2,000 years. At some point in the future, that clock will start up again and run for seven final years. That final seven years is referred to, not only as “the Tribulation,” but also as “Daniel’s seventieth week.”

Those seven years are divided into two periods of three-and-a-half years. At the mid-point, as we just read in Daniel’s prophecy, the antichrist will break his covenant with Israel and “put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering.” He will then, as Paul told us, seat himself in the Jerusalem temple and declare that he is God.^[1] That is the “abomination of desolation” to which Jesus referred (see Matt. 24:15). That is why believers in Judea should “flee to the mountains” (Matt. 24:16), as that marks the beginning of the worst tribulation the world has ever witnessed (see Matt. 24:21).

It is possible that the “Judean flight” was symbolically seen by John in his vision, recorded in the twelfth chapter of the book Revelation. If so, the Judean believers will find a special place of safety prepared for them in the wilderness where they will be “nourished” for exactly three-and-a-half years, the remaining period of the seven-year Tribulation (see Rev. 12:6, 13-17). John foresaw Satan’s rage over their escape, and his subsequent war with the rest of those who “keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus” (Rev. 12:17). That is why I think it would be a good idea for believers all around the world to run for safety in remote locations when the antichrist declares his deity in Jerusalem.

^[1] This indicates to us, of course, that the Jerusalem temple must be rebuilt, as currently, there is no temple in Jerusalem (as of the year 2005 when this is being written).