Elder Goh Kee Tai

 

The Great Tribulation

Our Lord Jesus Christ has warned us that the whole world will go through the most terrible time of afflictions and calamity known as the Great Tribulation Period, ‘such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be’ (Mt 24:21). This global unprecedented time of trouble will occur during the seven-year rule of the most vile and ruthless anti-Semitic world super-dictator, the Antichrist (our Lord’s arch enemy), who exerts absolute controls over the world’s religious, political and economic systems and demands all the inhabitants of the earth to worship him (2 Th 2:4).

 

God has promised believers that they will be delivered from the reign of terror of the diabolical Antichrist whose unrestrained power is given by Satan (Rev 13:2), when they will be changed and caught up (raptured) to meet the Lord in the air when He returns in the clouds in great glory and power for His redeemed (1 Th 4:16,17).This wondrous supernatural event will occur just prior to the beginning of the great tribulation. The tribulation period will end with the Lord’s coming to the earth with His saints from heaven to destroy the Antichrist and the armies of the world at the battle of Armageddon and establish His millennial kingdom (Rev 19: 11-16).

 

The great tribulation period is also a time of afflictions and divine punishment and destruction as manifested by a series of progressively more severe plagues and catastrophes coming in quick succession directed at the Antichrist and his worshippers (Rev 14: 9-11; 16:2). These judgments are described in symbolic terms as seals, trumpets and vials (Rev 6: 1-17; 8:7-12; 9:1-19; 16:1-11, 17-21). The severity and intensity of these judgments almost decimate all life on earth.

 

The seal judgment

The Antichrist comes to power by intrigue and deceitful diplomacy as the ruler of the revived Roman empire (Rev 17:12,13). He is able to bring about world peace Once he gains absolute power through peace he will stamp out all resistance to his reign. There will be heightened political tension which soon breaks out into open hostilities and bloody wars among nations because of the rule of the Antichrist (Rev 6:1-4).

 

There is a severe shortage of food (Rev 6:5,6). With wars, famines and pestilences, one-quarter of the world’s population is decimated (Rev 6:8). A great earthquake accompanied by cosmic disturbances shakes up the earth: ‘and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together’ (Rev 6: 12-14). The seven Seal Judgement is an overview of the seven year of Great Tribulation from the beginning to the end of that period.

 

The trumpet judgment

In this judgment, one-third of the world’s trees and all green vegetation will be burnt up by ‘hail and fire’ with staggering ecological implications (Rev 8:7), followed by poisoning of one-third of sea water, killing its marine lives (Rev 8:8,9). The situation is further aggravated with one-third of the earth’s fresh water unfit for human consumption (Rev 8:10,11). The daylight hours are shortened by one-third, resulting in sharp reduction of agricultural productions (Rev 8:12).

 

The worshippers of the Antichrist will be severely tormented for five months with intense excruciating pain, like that of scorpion sting, but they will not die (Rev 9:5,6).

 

With more judgments by ‘fire, smoke and brimstones’ lasting for 13 months, one-third of the earth’s inhabitants is decimated (Rev 9: 15,18).

 

The vial judgment

In this judgment, God further plagues the worshippers of Satan and the Antichrist with terrible excruciating pains of grievous sores (Rev 16:2) and the scorching and blistering heat of the sun (Rev 16:8,9). All the remaining uncontaminated sea and fresh water become poisoned, killing all the fishes and other creatures (Rev 16:3,4).

 

Complete darkness then falls upon the capital of the Antichrist and his empire ( Rev 16:10,11).

Subsequently, God sends the world’s greatest hailstones and earthquake ‘such as was not since men were upon the earth’ and ‘every island fled away, and the mountains were not found’ (Rev 16: 18-21).Even so, will the prosperous island of Singapore, seemingly well sheltered from earthquake and tsunami by other land masses surrounding it, also disappear.

 

Despite God’s judgment on the world for its evil and the wicked ones for their iniquities with horrible wars, terrible famines and plagues, gigantic earthquakes, cosmic disturbances, the worshippers of Satan and the Antichrist remain unrepentant and continue to blaspheme God (Rev 9:20,21;16:11,21).

 

Salvation in the midst of tribulation

Our God is gracious, full of loving kindness and tender mercies. He has no pleasure in the death of sinners who transgress against Him (Eze 18:32). He is longsuffering, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance and believe in the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (2 Pet 3:9). In the midst of the darkest hours of human history during the last 42 months of the great tribulation (Rev 8:13), the Lord sends two prophets to evangelise the world to give sinners the last chance to repent in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sin and be spared from the wrath of the Lamb to come (Rev 11:3).

 

A great multitude of Gentiles from different geographical regions and racial groups who are not deceived by the counterfeit miracles of Satan and the Antichrist, find Christ as Saviour (Rev 7:9-10). However, they suffer severe hardship for their refusal to worship Satan and the Antichrist and have the mark of the Antichrist on the right hand or forehead to enable them to buy and sell (Rev 13:16,17). Not only do they have insufficient food and water, but they are also mercilessly persecuted, imprisoned and martyred (Rev 6: 9-11). These are the tribulation saints whose names are written in the book of the Lamb and the Lord will reward them richly with a crown of life for holding forth the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.

 

God permits the Antichrist to kill the two prophets in Jerusalem, but He resurrects them after 3½ days in full view of the world, followed by an earthquake which destroys one-tenth of the city and 7,000 of its citizens (Rev 11:7-13).

 

Protection of the Jews

At the beginning of his reign, the Antichrist makes a peace treaty with Israel and allows the Jews to offer sacrifices in the rebuilt Temple. But after 3 ½ years, he breaks the covenant (Dn 9:27), abolishes Jewish worship and desecrates the Temple in Jerusalem (Mt 24:15). He becomes ruthless and merciless as the Jews refuse to worship him. They will be severely persecutedwith unprecedented sufferings the world has ever experienced, and many be martyred.

 

The Lord seals the foreheads of 144,000 Jews, 12,000 from each tribe, to protect them. One-third of Israel will be saved and protected from total annihilation by the Antichrist (Zech 13:9; Rev12:13-17).

 

For the sake of the elect suffering such intense persecution and affliction under the heinous reign of the Antichrist, the Lord intervenes to shorten their days of sore tribulations (Mt 24:22)

 

The battle of Armageddon

Towards the end of the great tribulation period, there are wars between the Antichrist and the kings from the south and the north, but both are overthrown (Dan 11:40). He then enters Palestine and establishes his headquarters between Jerusalem and the Mediterranean Sea (Dan 11:45). It would not be long before he is threatened by huge enemy forces from the east and the north (Dan 11:44).

 

With the supernatural drying up of River Euphrates (Rev 16: 12-16), Satan gathers all the armies in the world to fight against Jesus Christ at the final battle of Armageddon. The Antichrist and the enemies of Israel will be utterly defeated (Rev 19: 11-21) by our Lord Jesus Christ ‘who shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming’ (2 Th 2:8).The horrendous carnage with the blood shed will flow 200 miles and to the depth of about 4 ½ feet (Rev 14:20). The world’s political and economic systems controlled by the Antichrist will also be completely destroyed (Rev 18:1-24).

 

The Antichrist and his right-hand man, the false prophet, are captured and both cast alive into the lake of fire (Rev 19:20). Christ will then establish His millennial kingdom on earth with its capital at Jerusalem. Only then will there be universal peace and justice in this world. In the meantime, Satan is bound in the ‘bottomless pit’ for 1,000 years (Rev 20:2,3) and finally cast into the lake of fire (Rev 20:10).

 

Conclusion

All the prophecies concerning the first coming of our Saviour Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection have been fulfilled. The great details regarding the horrific events in the great tribulation period and God’s judgments preceding our Lord’s return will also be fulfilled with precision. As children of light, may none of us be deceived by the apparent peace, safety and prosperity of the land (2 Th 5:3).

 

There is a way of escape from the coming judgments. Have you confessed Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour and washed by the blood of the Lamb? Time is running out as we see the signs of the imminent return of Jesus Christ rapidly unfolding before our eyes. Be spiritually discerning. Be sure of our salvation and that our names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

 

Love not the world with its lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes and the pride of life (1 Jn 2:15,16). It is not our permanent home. Our citizenship is in heaven (Ph 3:20). All our wealth and material possessions which we have laboriously acquired in our lives will be left behind for the Antichrist.

 

May we look expectantly to the soon-coming of our Lord Jesus Christ when He appears in the clouds in the sky with great power and glory to take His redeemed to be with Him. What a blessed and glorious day it will when we will all be changed into glorified resurrection bodies like that of our Lord. May that day be soon, even now, come, O Lord Jesus. Amen.