What is the tribulation?

Understanding Matthew 24:21

The tribulation — particularly the 'great tribulation' — is one of the most dramatic and debated concepts in biblical prophecy. It describes a future period of unparalleled suffering that precedes Christ's return and the establishment of His kingdom.

Jesus' teaching — The Olivet Discourse:

In Matthew 24 (parallels in Mark 13 and Luke 21), Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives and answered His disciples' questions about the destruction of the Temple and the end of the age. His description of coming events includes:

• Wars, famines, and earthquakes as 'the beginning of birth pains' (v. 8)
• Persecution, betrayal, and the rise of false prophets (vv. 9-12)
• The 'abomination of desolation' standing in the holy place (v. 15, referencing Daniel 9:27)
• 'Great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now — and never to be equaled again' (v. 21)
• Cosmic signs: the sun darkened, moon not giving light, stars falling (v. 29)
• The Son of Man coming on the clouds with power and great glory (v. 30)

The critical interpretive question is whether Jesus is describing the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 (which historically fulfilled many of these descriptions), a future end-times tribulation, or both — with the historical event serving as a type of the eschatological one.

Daniel's seventy 'sevens' (Daniel 9:24-27):

The seven-year tribulation framework comes primarily from Daniel's prophecy of 'seventy sevens' (490 years) decreed for Israel:

• 69 'sevens' (483 years) from the decree to rebuild Jerusalem to the Messiah's coming
• A gap between the 69th and 70th 'seven' (the current church age, in the dispensationalist reading)
• The 70th 'seven' (the final 7 years) = the tribulation period

During this final 'seven,' a ruler (identified as the Antichrist) makes a covenant with Israel, breaks it at the midpoint (3.5 years), and sets up 'the abomination that causes desolation.' This midpoint division creates the distinction between the first half of the tribulation and the 'great tribulation' (the more intense second half).

Revelation's tribulation narrative:

Revelation 6-19 is commonly understood as describing the tribulation period through three series of judgments:

1. Seven seals (Revelation 6-8:1) — Conquest, war, famine, death, martyrs' cry, cosmic upheaval, silence in heaven

2. Seven trumpets (Revelation 8:2-11:19) — Hail and fire, sea turned to blood, waters poisoned, sky darkened, demonic locusts, a 200-million army, the seventh trumpet (God's kingdom announced)

3. Seven bowls of wrath (Revelation 15-16) — Sores, sea to blood, rivers to blood, scorching heat, darkness, Euphrates dried up, the final earthquake and Armageddon

These judgments escalate in severity. Whether they are sequential, overlapping, or recapitulative (telling the same story from different angles) is debated among interpreters.

The Antichrist and the false prophet:

Revelation 13 describes two 'beasts':

• The beast from the sea (the Antichrist) — a political ruler who receives authority from the dragon (Satan), blasphemes God, and wages war against the saints. He demands worship and exercises global authority for 42 months (3.5 years).
• The beast from the earth (the false prophet) — performs miraculous signs, deceives the world, and enforces the 'mark of the beast' (666) without which no one can buy or sell.

2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 describes the 'man of lawlessness' who 'sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God' — widely identified with the Antichrist figure.

Major interpretive frameworks:

Futurism — The tribulation is a literal future period, still to come. Most evangelicals hold this view. The events of Revelation 4-19 are yet to be fulfilled.

Preterism — Most or all of the tribulation prophecies were fulfilled in the first century, particularly in the destruction of Jerusalem (AD 70) and the fall of Rome. The 'great tribulation' was the horrific siege of Jerusalem described by Josephus.

Historicism — The tribulation prophecies have been progressively fulfilled throughout church history, with the papacy, Islam, or various historical figures representing the Antichrist.

Idealism — The tribulation imagery represents the ongoing spiritual battle between good and evil throughout history, not specific future or past events.

Purpose of the tribulation:

Whatever interpretive framework one holds, the tribulation serves several theological purposes:

1. Divine judgment — God's righteous wrath against a rebellious world (Romans 1:18). The tribulation is not arbitrary suffering but just punishment.

2. Purification of Israel — Many interpreters see the tribulation as the catalyst for Israel's national turning to Christ (Zechariah 12:10, Romans 11:25-26).

3. Exposure of evil — The Antichrist's reign strips away the pretense of human self-sufficiency and exposes the true nature of rebellion against God.

4. Vindication of the saints — The martyrs cry 'How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?' (Revelation 6:10). The tribulation answers that cry.

5. Preparation for the kingdom — The old order must be dismantled before Christ's kingdom can be established. The tribulation is the birth pains of a new world (Romans 8:22).

Regardless of one's eschatological position, the tribulation passages serve a present-tense purpose: they remind believers that this world is not ultimate, that evil will be judged, and that Christ's victory is certain. As Jesus concluded His Olivet Discourse: 'Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away' (Matthew 24:35).