TRIBULATION

Matthew 24 Continued

E. J. Davis

V. 9 - “Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.” It will no longer be the beginning of sorrows, “Then” tribulation begins. Jesus says to Israel, “You will suffer affliction, be hated and killed.” All these things will be intensified, especially through the work of the false prophet and then the antichrist who shall come on the scene.

V. 10 - “And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.” Secret believers will be snitched on. The words, “hate,” “betray,” “afflicted” and “kill” tell the story of what that time will be like.

V. 11,12 - “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.” “Deceive” and “love wax cold,” this will be the condition after the rapture. It is bad enough now, but when the overcomers are taken out of the world, evil men will have their day. The overcomers are holding back the darkness that is coming on the world: by their presence, their prayers, by proclaiming the Word of God and standing for the truth. When these powerful lights are taken up, the man of sin shall be revealed. II Thess. 2:6,7.

V. 13 - “But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” This verse has been widely misapplied, saying we have to hold out faithful to the end of our life to be saved (keeping the law and keeping saved, etc.). But the subject is tribulation days, people who endure to the end of the tribulation. They will be saved physically from death.

V. 14 - “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” What gospel is it? It is the gospel of the kingdom. The kingdom is not our message, we are of the Church Age. “Then shall the end come,” (Strongs) “to set out for a definite point, the point aimed at as a limit, the conclusion of an act or state.”

V. 15 - “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:)” Just what is the abomination of desolation? It is the image of the antichrist (Dan. 12:11; Rev. 13:14,15). Jesus says when you see it stand in the holy place this is a defining change. “Whoso readeth, let him understand,” take notice, ponder, consider and heed. Heed what? The next verses tells us.

V. 16-21 - “Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” “Then shall come the end” (v. 14), “when ye...see the abomination of desolation stand in the holy place” (v. 15), “then shall be great tribulation (v. 21). The last three and a half years of tribulation will be terrific suffering. This is not going to happen until the antichrist’s image is in the temple. The remnant of Israel will have to flee and hide. God is going to have to protect them.

V. 22 - “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” The elect are the believing remnant, those days will be shortened, so they will not be killed. Satan’s measured off time will be shortened.

V. 23,24 - “Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” The false prophets shall do signs and wonders by the power of Satan. No doubt we will see more super-natural things as time goes by. Be careful even believers can be deceived. That is why it is so important to keep in the Word and measure everything by the Scriptures. Anyone can take a Scripture out of contect and make it say anything they want.

V. 25,26 - “Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.” Don’t believe it, for this is not how the Messiah is coming.

V. 27 - “For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” This is not how He is coming for the church, but to Israel, swiftly, openly, not secretly. He will come as the Judge of the nations and the helper of His people the Jews. Lightning is destructive and He is coming in unsurpassing judgment of all unrighteousness.

V. 28 - “For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.” “For,” this is the result of it. At the great warfare, the carniverious birds will be gathered unto the great supper of God (Rev. 19:17,18), to eat the flesh of those ungodly men that have fallen in battle, being slain of God.

(continued - next issue, Immediately After The Tribulation)