The Day of the Lord

By John F. Walvoord

[Chancellor, Dallas Theological Seminary, Dallas, Texas]

Introduction

After the Apostle Paul introduces the comprehensive view of the Rapture, he wrote, “Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” (1 Thess 5:1–2). The day of the Lord, like the Rapture, has no preceding signs and therefore is pictured as “a thief in the night” whose coming is not anticipated.

Much confusion on this subject has arisen by interpreters who try to interpret this expression on the basis of New Testament references. It is, however, a major Old Testament reference and, unless the whole Bible is studied on this subject, only confusion arises in attempting to describe the day of the Lord in the New Testament. One of the common mistakes is to make the day of the Lord begin at the Second Coming of Christ as all posttribulationists do. However, the events that precede the Second Coming are precisely what would be anticipated under a correct definition of the day of the Lord. Clarity is brought to the subject when a comprehensive definition of the term is found in all Scriptures.

The Day Of The Lord In The Old Testament

According to the Bible, the day of the Lord is a time when God deals in direct judgment of the world in contrast to a time of grace when he does not. There were frequent days of the Lord in the Old Testament when God dealt with Israel because of their straying and would bring in an invader or would introduce drought or famine or some other catastrophe. These periods had a beginning and an ending, but obviously were more than a twenty-four-hour day. It was an extended period of time, long or short, depending on the circumstances. The term “the day of the Lord” is also used to refer to the time of millennial blessing, because in the millennium God will deal in direct judgment on sin and there will be a rule with an iron scepter, indicating absolute judgment as in Revelation 19:15. The day of the Lord is pictured as a time of darkness (1 Thess 5:1–4). In a period of twenty-four hours the day comes before the darkness at evening. All these factors are brought out in the Old Testament references to the day of the Lord (Isa 2:12–22; 13:9–16; 34:1–8; Joel 1:15–2:11, 28–32; 3:9–12; Amos 5:18–20; Obad 15-17; Zeph 1:7–18).

The reference in Isaiah 2:12–21 states that God will have a day of judgment in which He will bring down the proud and the lofty, will destroy idols, and will introduce fear in man of God’s judgment.

Isaiah 13 is most specific. Isaiah writes:

See, the day of the Lord is coming—a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger—to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it. The stars of heaven and their constellations will not show their light. The rising sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light. I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless. I will make man scarcer than pure gold, more rare than the gold of Ophir. Therefore I will make the heavens tremble; and the earth will shake from its place at the wrath of the Lord Almighty, in the day of his burning anger. (Isa 13:9–13)

The description here of the day of the Lord far exceeds anything that occurred in the Old Testament but corresponds precisely with what the Book of Revelation speaks of as the sun and the moon being darkened, not giving their normal light as God pours out judgments on man (Rev 6:12–17).

Later Isaiah refers to the slaughter of the wicked and the disturbances in the heavens, speaks of “their land” being “drenched with blood,” and continues describing the Lord’s day of vengeance, “a year of retribution, to uphold Zion’s cause” (Isa 34:7–8).

The prophet Joel is the most explicit on the judgments of the day of the Lord. After describing the plague of locusts and the destruction of their crops he expresses a lament:

Alas, for that day! For the day of the Lord is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty. Has not the food been cut off before our very eyes—joy and gladness from the house of our God? The seeds are shriveled beneath the clods. The storehouses are in ruins, the granaries have been broken down, for the grain has dried up. How the cattle moan! The herds mill about because they have no pasture; even the flocks of sheep are suffering. To you, O Lord, I call, for fire has devoured the open pastures and flames have burned up all the trees of the field. Even the wild animals pant for you; the streams of water have dried up and fire has devoured the open pastures. (Joel 1:15–20; cf. Rev 8:7–11)

Joel 2 continues to describe the terrible judgment of God. The day of the Lord introduces new elements in the fulfillment:

And afterward, I will pour out my spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my spirit in those days. I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, among the survivors whom the Lord calls. (Joel 2:28–32; cf. Rev 6:12–17; 8:12)

While some prophecies in the Old Testament refer to periods that are already passed, this obviously refers to the Great Tribulation described in the Book of Revelation as immediately preceding the Second Coming. Significant additional prophecy is given in Joel 3:9–12 about the millennium, including the famous quotation, “Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears” (Joel 3:10). Amos 5:18–20 refers to the day of the Lord as a time of darkness and judgment. Obadiah 15–17 adds a further word, including the fact that there will be salvation only in Mount Zion. Zephaniah 1:7–18 speaks of the day of the Lord as “a day of wrath, a day of distress and anguish, a day of trouble and ruin, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness, a day of trumpet and battle cry against the fortified cities and against the corner towers” (Zeph 1:15–16). The terrible judgment in that period is further described in Zephaniah 1:17–18.

In summary, in the Old Testament the day of the Lord is a period of direct judgments of God upon those who are wicked, some of which were fulfilled in the Old Testament. But the Old Testament prophecies go far beyond anything fulfilled then, and their ultimate fulfillment will be in the future tribulation time. These references make plain the day of the Lord will begin before the Second Coming and will include the terrible time of tribulation that precedes. And if the beginning of the day of the Lord is at the time of the Rapture, then it is clear that the Rapture precedes this time of trouble.

The Day Of The Lord In The New Testament

The New Testament in 1 Thessalonians 5 builds upon this doctrine of the Old Testament but gives further information. Paul, in 1 Thessalonians 5 predicts that the day of the Lord and its full judgment on the world will be preceded by a time of peace, “While the people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape” (1 Thess 5:3).

This brings out a very important point often overlooked by expositors. There is a difference between the day of the Lord beginning and the day of the Lord coming. Scriptures never speak of the day of the Lord beginning but do speak of the day of the Lord coming. The difference is that the word “begin” refers to a time period whereas “coming” refers to a series of events. The major events of the tribulation do not come immediately. Accordingly, when the Rapture occurs, it begins a time period and is followed by a time of peace. This is the result of the covenant of Daniel 9:27, which gives Israel peace for the first half of the final seven-year-period. This time of peace will be interpreted in the world as an escape from the problems of the Middle East. But it is a false hope, as verse three tells us, because it will suddenly end with the beginning of the Great Tribulation, as a woman giving birth to a child.

In relation to the Rapture, Paul states, “But you, brother, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness” (1 Thess 5:4–5). Our present day of grace is compared to the daylight which the Church today is enjoying. When the Rapture occurs, it ends the daylight and begins a period of darkness which is synonymous with the day of the Lord. Christians will not enter the period of darkness. Accordingly, Christians should be living expectantly, walking in the will of God as Paul commands (1 Thess 5:6–7). The most important prophecy is in 1 Thessalonians 5:9, where it states, “For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” In contrast to those in the day of the Lord who will suffer judgment from God, a Christian will be raptured before the day of the Lord begins and accordingly does not suffer in the time of wrath which characterizes the day of the Lord.

Additional light is given in 2 Thessalonians 2. There are indications that between 1 and 2 Thessalonians false teachers came into the Thessalonian church when it was experiencing terrible persecution. These false teachers said that their sufferings were the sufferings of the day of the Lord. This alarmed the Thessalonians however because it was not what Paul taught, even though the false teachers claimed that Paul had taught this (2 Thess 2:2–5). It raised the question, first of all, whether they would have to go through the day of the Lord which they had not anticipated. Second, the question was whether the Rapture itself had occurred and they had missed it.

When Paul heard of this false teaching, he wrote 2 Thessalonians and particularly in chapter 2 set the matter straight. He states, “Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come” (2 Thess 2:1–2). In this reference he is referring to his teaching on the Rapture and the fact that wrong teaching did not come from him as the false teachers claimed, either by word or by report or by letter. In 2 Thessalonians 2:3–5 he goes on to say, “Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshipped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God. Don’t you remember that when I was with you I used to tell you these things?”

Here is the important distinction between the day of the Lord beginning as it does at the Rapture more than seven years before the Second Coming, and the day of the Lord coming. The day of the Lord will come when its major events occur and the full revelation of the Antichrist will take place. The Antichrist, of course, will be revealed in part as soon as he conquers the ten countries of the revived Roman empire. He will be further confirmed when he then makes the seven-year covenant of Daniel 9:27. But the major events that will expose him as the one who claims to be God and who is the Antichrist do not occur until the great Tribulation begins. Then the day of the Lord fully comes as a series of events.

What Paul is saying is that they are not in the day of the Lord because the Antichrist has not been revealed. None of the events identifying the Antichrist will have occurred. As indicated he will be revealed in part more than seven years before the Second Coming, but the full revelation will occur at the beginning of the Great Tribulation three-and-a-half years before the Second Coming.

As further proof that they are not in the day of the Lord, he refers to the work of the Holy Spirit in holding back sin. Paul writes:

And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming (2 Thess 2:6–8).

Though differing explanations have been offered, the ultimate control of evil is by God, through the Holy Spirit. Now the Spirit indwells the church and opposes evil in the world. The work of the Holy Spirit in the church will cease at the Rapture, and then the work of the Spirit returns to the situation before Pentecost when the Spirit did not indwell everyone born again. The departure of the Spirit is a reversal of his “coming”; though the Spirit causes salvation and new birth, the Spirit cannot be “taken away” (2 Thess 2:7) unless the Rapture occurs. His indwelling presence now proves they are not in the day of the Lord.

Paul goes on to describe the works of Satan and the Antichrist (2 Thess 2:9–12). He predicts that those who reject the truth will have great delusions and belief in the Antichrist to their own destruction. A proper interpretation of 2 Thessalonians 2 does much to confirm the pretribulation Rapture and places all the events in their proper light as they will be fulfilled in the future.

The day of the Lord in its time of blessing will occur after the Second Coming of Christ. In the millennial kingdom Christ will still judge sin immediately as he does in the Great Tribulation, but there will also be blessings of God and the restoration of Israel. Along with the binding of Satan and the demon world, the blessings of God will pour out on all nature in the thousand-year kingdom.

Conclusion

It is important to note, however, that the Rapture itself is near and could occur any day, but the events that follow the Rapture, including all of the terrible events of the day of the Lord, could very well fall on our present generation. It renews the fact that it is so important to be saved and to be ready for Jesus Christ, because those who are not ready will be left behind.