The DAY OF THE LORD is “The Day of Jehovah,” and its usage is always associated with something dire, with judgment, and with events outside the implementation of man. In other words, it is the intervention of God with the power of God in the affairs of this world. It has a primary application to Israel, but that is always extended often to a wider field, and that involves the world.
The term covers the chronology of events after the Rapture right up to the new heavens and the new earth, which is the culmination of all human history before the eternal state. It is the time when God openly and dramatically intervenes in the undertakings of this earth in awesome power and wrath. Therefore, the DAY of the LORD covers the Tribulation — the judgments and the way humans will react to it. In particular, the greatest concentration of prophecies and the usage of this term relate to the Second Coming of the Lord – His glorious appearing, the Second Coming, which is for Armageddon and His Return to His earthly people, the Jews. It often deals with signs and people’s emotions and cosmic happenings. It is very much connected with Israel and her dealings with God and the nations.
There are so many references to the time period known as “The Day of the LORD,” and many of them don’t mention the whole term, but we know that is what is being referred to as it parallels other passages. The list is exhaustive and too big to include all texts, but I want to list most of the major mentions for the OT and NT references for the DAY of the LORD, and special points are underlined.
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES TO THE DAY OF THE LORD FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT
We have been looking at 14 of the main passages from the Old Testament to learn about this special term. Now we will look at more scriptures. These references are not necessarily using the term “the Day of the LORD,” but we know through all combined passages that their settings are squarely in the Day of the LORD. This list will not be exhaustive, for there are so many we could include. Often the term “In that day“ or “At that time” or “In the day“ is close to the term “the Day of the LORD,” and most certainly, all these passages to come are contained in that framework from the start of the Tribulation to the setting up of the Millennial Kingdom and even through to the New heavens and earth. I will give the scriptures with some comment.
[1]. Isaiah 2: 17 “The pride of man will be humbled and the loftiness of men will be abased, and the LORD alone will be exalted in that day [the Day of His Second Coming]. 18 The idols will completely vanish. 19 Men will go into caves of the rocks and into holes of the ground before the terror of the LORD and before the splendour of His majesty, when He arises to make the earth tremble. 20 In that day men will cast away to the moles and the bats their idols of silver and their idols of gold which they made for themselves to worship, 21 in order to go into the caverns of the rocks and the clefts of the cliffs before the terror of the LORD and the splendour of His majesty, when He arises to make the earth tremble.”
The start of this passage says the Lord will be exalted in that day because the loftiness of man will be abased. The disciples on Olivet asked the Lord when will be the end of the age. There are two ages that will have an end. Both are still future. The first is the Church age, and that ends at the Rapture. The second is the one they asked the Lord about, “the end of the age, and His Coming.” That age ends at the Second Coming when the age of man’s rule and power and government will end forever, and the Lord is in control from that point onwards. The Isaiah passage demonstrates the universality of the Lord’s wrath. Not one will escape.
Verses 18 to 21 will have their direct fulfillment in Revelation chapter 6. The Lord’s majesty is on display in His wrath, and man will not be able to face it. They cast away all their vain things and seek any geographic feature in which to hide. The splendor of His majesty will cause such fear in people.
Here are the verses –
Revelation 6: 12 “I looked when He broke the sixth seal and there was a great earthquake and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood, 13 and the stars of the sky fell to the earth as a fig tree casts its unripe figs when shaken by a great wind. 14 The sky was split apart like a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. 15 The kings of the earth and the great men and the commanders and the rich and the strong and every slave and free man hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains; 16 and they said to the mountains and to the rocks, ‘Fall on us and hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.'”
The Bible says that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. That is correct, when in this life before the Rapture, men reverence the Lord in the proper understanding of fear and turn to be saved. BUT the fear after the Rapture will be dreadful when people will quake and be alarmed, and their spirits will melt. Even then, they could turn to God, but they won’t. In fact, this is what they will do in the Tribulation period – Revelation 16:9-11 “and men were scorched with fierce heat, and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues and they did not repent, so as to give Him glory. The fifth angel poured out his bowl upon the throne of the beast and his kingdom became darkened, and they gnawed their tongues because of pain, and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and they did not repent of their deeds.”
I suppose one could say, “These are apocalyptic events,” but I am just amazed at how many movies and books have been produced focusing on events like these. Aliens and creatures from space is a favorite one, objects falling from the sky, great disasters from meteors, earthquakes and volcanoes and all sorts of imaginations movie producers like; demonic creatures, giant bugs, supernatural beings, giant climatic events, etc. etc. They number hundreds, if not thousands. A number of them also contain the word “apocalypse” and similar dire names.
It is like the world is being made aware that some calamitous events and times lie ahead. I guess this is quite true, but will people take any notice while they have the opportunity to do so? It is like the world is preparing itself for the times that lie ahead, but who is doing that preparing? I somehow don’t think God is doing this. I will leave it at that.))
[2]. Isaiah 10: 20 “Now it will come about in that day that the remnant of Israel and those of the house of Jacob who have escaped, will never again rely on the one who struck them, but will truly rely on the LORD, the Holy One of Israel. 21 A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God, 22 for though your people, O Israel, may be like the sand of the sea, only a remnant within them will return. A destruction is determined, overflowing with righteousness. 23 A complete destruction, one that is decreed, the Lord GOD of hosts will execute in the midst of the whole land.
((This is an amazing passage all hinging on “in that day,” which is part of the Day of the LORD, but the part that deals with Israel’s restoration and the beginning of the Millennium. The remnant of Israel in verse 20 will be the Jewish Tribulation saints from Revelation 12, preserved during the wrath in the Day of the LORD, and ones from around the world who will be brought home after the Lord is settled in Jerusalem. The nation always made alliances with pagan nations, but once the Lord takes up their cause, they will forever rely on Jehovah. That will be fantastic.
Verse 22 is a verse that has a bit of a problem. If you have are thoughts, I’d love to hear them. Verse 22 says the numbers of Jews are like the sand of the sea but only a remnant will return. Then we look at Zechariah and see that that suggests a third will be saved – Zechariah 13:7-9 “Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, and against the man, My Associate,’ declares the LORD of hosts. ‘Strike the Shepherd that the sheep may be scattered, and I will turn My hand against the little ones, 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.'”
This Isaiah passage deals with Israel’s restoration and the destruction of unrighteousness in Israel at the Second Coming when the Lord establishes righteousness. What is evil and unclean will be destruction that righteousness will overflow.))
[3]. Isaiah 14: 1 “When the LORD will have compassion on Jacob and again choose Israel and settle them in their own land, then strangers will join them and attach themselves to the house of Jacob…. 3 It will be in the day when the LORD gives you rest from your pain and turmoil and harsh service in which you have been enslaved, 4 that you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon and say, ‘How the oppressor has ceased, and how fury has ceased!’…. 7 The whole earth is at rest and is quiet. They break forth into shouts of joy.”
((The Day of the LORD embraces Israel’s restoration and settlement forever in the land when Messiah returns. All existing enemies are defeated at Armageddon (the whole world because every nation sends armies to Armageddon.) The Lord shows compassion and settles them where they belong. However, I am not sure who the strangers are, said to attach themselves to the house of Jacob. I think it is safe to say they are not Jews. I cannot say any more about it.
The timing of this passage is clearly stated, which is when the Lord settles them in their own land. That will be right after the Second Coming at the start of the Millennium. There are some who might say that applied to the return from the Babylonian captivity, and in a tiny way, part of that could be true, but it can’t account for the sentence, “The whole earth is at rest and is quiet.” That will only happen after the Second Coming, so the references to the king of Babylon and the oppressor must mean all Israel’s enemies through history. They will all be gone; never again will any of them be an issue.))
[4]. Isaiah 24: 1 “Behold, the LORD lays the earth waste, devastates it, distorts its surface and scatters its inhabitants…. 3 The earth will be completely laid waste and completely despoiled for the LORD has spoken this word. 4 The earth mourns and withers, the world fades and withers, the exalted of the people of the earth fade away. 5 The earth is also polluted by its inhabitants for they transgressed laws, violated statutes, broke the everlasting covenant. 6 Therefore, a curse devours the earth and those who live in it are held guilty. Therefore, the inhabitants of the earth are burned and few men are left.”
This scene of judgment, by its very language, is wider than some catastrophe in just the land of Judah or Samaria. In fact, it is upon the whole world, and that is the Day of the LORD, even though that term is not mentioned in our passage. By inference, it can be nothing less than The Day of the LORD because of each description. 7 times, “earth” is mentioned and the world once. The term “distorts its surface” is from the severe judgments that will happen on the earth right through the plagues of Revelation.
One hint for the judgment that is universal is in verse 5, where it says the earth is polluted by its inhabitants. This is so true, and we see the pollution of man already in decrees, rules, laws, legislation and the corruption of gender, marriage, godliness, sexuality, evolution, lies and evil rising up everywhere. Ours is a polluted world, morally, spiritually, materially, and the hand of God is about to throw judgment after judgment at this polluted world in the Tribulation.
Of course, the double fulfillment can apply here, for God did bring catastrophe on Israel, but it goes way beyond that. Notice verse 6, “few men are left,” and this matches the statement at the end of the Tribulation that men will be as scarce as the gold of Ophir. Isaiah 13:12 “I will make mortal man scarcer than pure gold, and mankind than the gold of Ophir.”
In various articles over time, I have written on the great loss of life in the Tribulation. Just in Revelation, in chapter 6, there are wars and all the resultant death from famine and disease. In chapter 6, a fourth of the world will die. In Revelation 9, one-third of mankind will die. Then there are others as well. There is enormous loss of life, so by the time each nation sends its armies to Israel, their numbers will be very small. By saying “the inhabitants of the earth are burned,” I think it means they will be “burned off” in judgment rather than a burning upon all flesh.
Mankind can’t pollute the world with evil and remain guiltless. There is always a day of accountability. Everything has a consequence, and we see that in Nature and in all laws and the laws of physics. It certainly will apply to mankind who was created in the image of God.))
Part 8 to follow.