After the Tribulation, Jesus will return.
What did Jesus mean when he used the phrase, “After the Tribulation?” This continues our study of the Olivet Discourse.
A majority of Bible prophecy scholars (Especially in the centuries prior to our current one.) teach that his phrase, “after the Tribulation,” referenced the destruction of Jerusalem. A smaller number of prophecy teachers believe the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD was a foreshadowing event. I include myself in that smaller number. Jesus did refer to it, and in fact, predict it. But on a grander scale, his words pointed to another destruction of Jerusalem in days still future from our current date. The three verses we will consider in this article are important to understanding the return of Christ.
If the phrase, after the tribulation, referred to the 70 AD destruction, what happened to the great sign of the return of Christ? And when did the gathering of God’s elect occur? When did the trumpet blast sound that signaled the gathering of God’s elect? The more popular model of prophecy places too many critical events into a non-literal fulfillment.
Here’s a news flash for the preterist teacher. After the tribulation, an actual return of Jesus will occur.
As always, we need to consider the context. In the previous article, (see here.) I pointed out there will be confusion regarding the false appearances of Christ. Jesus made it clear that when he returned there would be no confusion. But if the tribulation he referenced was 1900 years ago, then there remains a lot of confusion.
Matthew 24:29 Signs in the heavens after the tribulation
“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.”
The Lord told his disciples the world should expect to see amazing signs in the heavens just before his return. There was a darkening of the sun when Jesus was on the cross. But, He didn’t return in glory, gather the elect, and judge the ungodly, in the first century.
Peter referred to a passage in the Book of Joel when he preached his famous sermon in the books of Acts. He believed the return of Christ was imminent. Was he wrong to refer to the passage in Joel? No. That’s a very important end-times prophecy. Was he wrong in thinking the return of Christ was about to happen? Yes. There have been many less-anointed prophecy teachers who have thought the same thing. Peter overlooked many clues the Lord gave him that the return of Christ wasn’t imminent. One of those clues was the fact that Jesus predicted Peter’s martyrdom in his later years.
Check out a few other verses that point to amazing signs in the heavens before the return of Jesus.
The Bible has a lot to say about the time period after the tribulation
Isaiah 13:10
For the stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light. The sun will be darkened when it rises, and the moon will not give its light. A related article
Isaiah 24:23
The moon will be confounded and the sun ashamed; for the LORD of Hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and in the presence of His elders, He will display His glory. A related article
Isaiah 34:4
All the stars of heaven will be dissolved. The skies will be rolled up like a scroll, and all their stars will fall like withered leaves on the vine, and foliage on the fig tree. A related article
Joel 2:31
The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD. A related article
Matthew 24:30 Jesus will return after the tribulation
“Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”
This sign in heaven of the return of Jesus will be clear. It will stand in great contrast to the vultures in the sky. The circling vultures is a reference to the false Christ’s the Lord predicted in verse twenty-four. Many of the preterist scholars teach something else. They say the vultures should be translated as eagles. The original language allows for that translation but the context doesn’t. It’s true that eagles were a symbol of the Roman army. But that doesn’t fit the point of contrast Jesus was making. He compared vultures in the sky to a grand exhibit of glory that would stretch across the heavens. Even if the Roman banners did fly over Jerusalem, when did the great sign of the return of Christ occur after that? It did not occur That’s a future event — after the tribulation. The final and real tribulation will involve more than Israel but it will be centered in Israel.
All the prophets pointed to the time after the tribulation
Daniel 7:13
In my vision in the night, I continued to watch. And I saw One like a Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into His presence. A related article
Revelation 1:7
Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him–even those who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. So shall it be! Amen. A related article
Matthew 24:3
While Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will all this happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?” A related article
Matthew 24:31 A trumpet blast after the tribulation
“And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”
The Apostle Paul spoke about this gathering of the elect. It’s rather ironic because he warned the Christians of Thessalonica about false teaching. He warned that many teachers would say the return of Christ and the gathering of the elect already occurred. He said don’t believe it. The return is still in the future. Jesus’ reference to the time after the tribulation was in Paul’s mind when he urged the early Church to avoid jumping to hasty conclusions. His warning has gone unheeded. Still today, they ignore his warnings. The preterist and many of the futurist models of Bible prophecy ignore the plain words of Jesus and Paul. We should avoid creating prophecy models that ignore the plain reading of scripture.
The elect of God are gathered to Christ after the tribulation
Isaiah 27:13
And in that day a great trumpet will sound, and those who were perishing in Assyria will come forth with those who were exiles in Egypt. And they will worship the LORD on the holy mountain in Jerusalem. A related article
Matthew 24:24
For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders that would deceive even the elect. If that were possible. A related article
1 Thessalonians 4:16
For the Lord, Himself will descend from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel. And with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will be the first to rise. A related article
Revelation 11:15
Then the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and loud voices called out in heaven. “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever.” A related article
In these three verses, Matthew 24:29-31, we read that there are some key events. Those events are scheduled to occur after the tribulation.
So, did Jesus already arrive in the clouds in the first century?
Did the trumpet blast already occur which signaled the gathering of God’s elect?
And, did the great sign of Christ’s return take place in AD 70?
The answer to these questions is obvious. No.
Many scholars have argued about poetic or metaphorical language. But the messages that the ancient prophets foretold didn’t point to a mythical or metaphorical return of Christ. The disciples watched Jesus rise into the sky, and pass through the clouds on his way to heaven. An angel told them Jesus would return in the same way. That wasn’t an allegory that meant the spirit of Jesus would live in my heart. No. Jesus will return surrounded by clouds. Some of those clouds will be storm clouds. And in addition, a great cloud of angelic creatures will come with him.
The actual return of Christ is a future event. Every eye will see it. There will be no doubt about it.
What did the early Church Fathers believe that our modern scholars are ignoring?
Let me know what you think.