1 Ch 12:32 Of the sons of Issachar, men who understood the times, with knowledge of what Israel should do, their chiefs were two hundred; and all their kinsmen were at their command.

The sons of Issachar were intelligent men, who understood the signs of the times, well versed in political affairs, and knew what was proper to be done in all the exigencies of human life; and who now perceived that it was both the duty and political interest of Israel to advance David to the throne.Today we seek sons and daughters of Issachar, men and women who understand the times we are living in and know what is to be done in all the exigencies of human life to advance King Jesus to His throne.

This blog is devoted to seeking Biblical truth related to current world events.


Friday, December 23, 2022

FINDING PEACE, HOPE, AND COMFORT IN TODAY’S WORLD OF CHAOS, EVIL, AND TRIBULATION

 FINDING PEACE, HOPE, AND COMFORT IN TODAY’S WORLD OF CHAOS,                                               EVIL, AND TRIBULATION

D.P. Weary, December, 2022

 

In these days of trouble, evil, and tribulation can we find comfort, hope, peace, and even joy? In this world, the Lord Jesus said we would have trouble and tribulation.

[Jhn 16:33 NKJV] 33 "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

[Jhn 15:19-21 NKJV] 19 "If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20 "Remember the word that I said to you, 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. 21 "But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me.

[Act 14:22 NKJV] 22 strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting [them] to continue in the faith, and [saying], "We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God."

[Rom 8:36 NKJV] 36 As it is written: "For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter."

[2Ti 3:12 NKJV] 12 Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.

 

There is a reason why people, even Christians can not find peace and hope in our world today. They do not believe, or even know the scriptures and the prophets.

[Luk 24:25 ESV] 25 And he said to them, "O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!

[Act 13:27 NKJV] 27 "For those who dwell in Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they did not know Him, nor even the voices of the Prophets which are read every Sabbath, have fulfilled [them] in condemning [Him].

[Mat 22:29 NKJV] 29 Jesus answered and said to them, "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.

[2Ch 24:19 NKJV] 19 Yet He sent prophets to them, to bring them back to the LORD; and they testified against them, but they would not listen.

[Neh 9:30 NKJV] 30 Yet for many years You had patience with them, And testified against them by Your Spirit in Your prophets. Yet they would not listen; Therefore You gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands.

 

So, let us now turn to the scriptures and the prophets to find peace, hope, comfort, encouragement, and even joy, not only for us, but that with which we can comfort and encourage others in the days that lie ahead of us.

 

Finding HOPE in the midst of Turmoil and Tribulation

D. P. Weary - May 2019.

In a world that is becoming more chaotic daily, where evil seems to be everywhere, where there is trouble around every corner and hopelessness abounds, can real, true hope be found? What is true hope? Can it be found in such days as we are living in? Who has it and what are they doing with it? Good questions. Let us turn to the Word of God to see if we can find some answers.

The word Hope from the Hebrew (O.T.):

מִבְטָח mibṭâch, mib-tawkh'; from H982; properly, a refuge, i.e. (objective) security, or (subjective) assurance:—confidence, hope, sure, trust.

קָוָה qâvâh, kaw-vaw'; a primitive root; to bind together (perhaps by twisting), i.e. collect; (figuratively) to expect: —gather (together), look, patiently, tarry, wait (for, on, upon).

מַחֲסֶה machăçeh, makh-as-eh'; or מַחְסֶה machçeh; from H2620; a shelter (literally or figuratively):—hope, (place of) refuge, shelter, trust.

תִּקְוָה tiqvâh, tik-vaw'; from H6960; (compare H6961) literally a cord (as an attachment); figuratively, expectancy:—expectation(-ted), hope, live, thing that I long for.

יָחַל yâchal, yaw-chal'; a primitive root; to wait; by implication, to be patient, hope: — (cause to, have, make to) hope, be pained, stay, tarry, trust, wait.

The word Hope from the Greek (N.T.):

ἐλπίς elpís, el-pece'; from a primary ἔλπω élpō (to anticipate, usually with pleasure); expectation (abstractly or concretely) or confidence: —faith, hope.

I.expectation of good, hope

A.           in the Christian sense

                                             i.joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation

           II.on hope, in hope, having hope

 .             the author of hope, or he who is its foundation

A.           the thing hoped for

 

By definition: Hope is the expectation and anticipation of good, joyful, and confident expectation, and the author and foundation of hope. Hope is a refuge, security, trust, confidence, something to patiently tarry or wait for, a place of shelter and refuge, and something longed for.

Where can we find the HOPE that the Biblical words for hope describe?

Hope and faith are found in God.

[1Pe 1:21 NKJV] 21 who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

[Lam 3:24 NKJV] 24 "The LORD [is] my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I hope in Him!"

[1Th 1:3 NKJV] 3 remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father,

True hope is the Lord Jesus Christ.

[1Ti 1:1 NKJV] 1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope,

[Col 1:27 NKJV] 27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

[Jer 17:7, 13 NKJV] 7 "Blessed [is] the man who trusts in the LORD, And whose hope is the LORD. ... 13 O LORD, the hope of Israel, All who forsake You shall be ashamed. "Those who depart from Me Shall be written in the earth, Because they have forsaken the LORD, The fountain of living waters."

[Jer 17:17-18 NKJV] 17 Do not be a terror to me; You [are] my hope in the day of doom. 18 Let them be ashamed who persecute me, But do not let me be put to shame; Let them be dismayed, But do not let me be dismayed. Bring on them the day of doom, And destroy them with double destruction!

 

There are great blessings to be found in true HOPE.

Hope is knowing that Jesus been raised from the dead and has defeated death and the grave forever. Death has lost its sting.

[1Co 15:12-19 NKJV] 12 Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. 14 And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching [is] empty and your faith [is] also empty. 15 Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up--if in fact the dead do not rise. 16 For if [the] dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. 17 And if Christ is not risen, your faith [is] futile; you are still in your sins! 18 Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.

[1Co 15:54-55 NKJV] 54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory." 55 "O Death, where [is] your sting? O Hades, where [is] your victory?"

 

Hope is knowing that at Jesus is coming for His saints, the dead will rise first, then those saints who are alive at that time will be caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air and thus always be with the Lord. We are to comfort one another with these words. It is Jesus who keeps His saints from the wrath of God that is coming upon the whole world.

[1Th 4:13-18 NKJV] 13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive [and] remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive [and] remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus, we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.

[Rom 5:9 NKJV] 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.

[1Th 1:10 NKJV] 10 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, [even] Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

[1Th 5:9 NKJV] 9 For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

[Rev 3:10 NKJV] 10 "Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.

Also: 1 Thes. 1:10, 4:15-18, 5:1-11; 2 Thes. 2:1-8; 1 Cor. 15:51-52; Luke 17:34-36; Rev. 3:10, 6:12-17, 7:11-15; John 11:23-26, Zeph. 2:3; Isa. 26:20-21; Gen. 19:15-16, 6: Exod. 19:4; Psalm 17:8, 27:5, 31:20, 57:1, 91:8-9, 12:1-5, 17:8, 15, 31:10-21, 32:7, 94:12-13.

 

Hope is the grace and glory that is to brought at the revelation and appearing of Jesus Christ. The blessed hope is the glorious appearing of Jesus.

[1Pe 1:13 NKJV] 13 Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest [your] hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

[Tit 2:13 NKJV] 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,

[Phl 3:20 NKJV] 20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,

[2Ti 4:8 NKJV] 8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.

[2Pe 3:13 NKJV] 13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

 

Hope, joy, and the crown of rejoicing are believers in the presence of Jesus at His coming.

[1Th 2:19 NKJV] 19 For what [is] our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? [Is it] not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming?

 

Hope is knowing that followers of Jesus are the children of God and that when Jesus is revealed, we shall be like Him.

[1Jo 3:1-3 NKJV] 1 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. 2 Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. 3 And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

 

Hope is the glory which shall be revealed in believers at the redemption of our earthly bodies that we eagerly and with perseverance wait for.

[Rom 8:18-25 NKJV] 18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy [to be compared] with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected [it] in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. 23 Not only [that], but we also who have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. 24 For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for [it] with perseverance.

 

Hope is salvation and eternal life because of Jesus.

[Tit 3:7 NKJV] 7 that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

[Tit 1:2 NKJV] 2 in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began,

[1Th 5:8 NKJV] 8 But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and [as] a helmet the hope of salvation.

 

Because of Hope, believers are not afraid, and not troubled even in times of suffering.

[1Pe 3:14-15 NKJV] 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, [you are] blessed. "And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled." 15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always [be] ready to [give] a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;

[Jos 1:9 NKJV] 9 "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God [is] with you wherever you go."

[Psa 27:5 NKJV] 5 For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.

[Psa 31:20 NKJV] 20 You shall hide them in the secret place of Your presence From the plots of man; You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion From the strife of tongues.

[Psa 91:9-11 NKJV] 9 Because you have made the LORD, [who is] my refuge, [Even] the Most High, your dwelling place, 10 No evil shall befall you, Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; 11 For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways.

 

Hope is the Lord’s calling upon believer’s lives and the riches of His inheritance in the saints.

[Eph 1:18 NKJV] 18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,

[Eph 4:4 NKJV] 4 [There is] one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling;

 

Hope is the ministry of righteousness, the ministry of the Spirit. Hope is the presence and working of the Holy Spirit in believers’ lives.

[2Co 3:7-12 NKJV] 7 But if the ministry of death, written [and] engraved on stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which [glory] was passing away, 8 how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious? 9 For if the ministry of condemnation [had] glory, the ministry of righteousness exceeds much more in glory. 10 For even what was made glorious had no glory in this respect, because of the glory that excels. 11 For if what is passing away [was] glorious, what remains [is] much more glorious. 12 Therefore, since we have such hope, we use great boldness of speech—

 

Hope comes from the patience and comfort of the Scriptures that brings joy and peace by the power of the Holy Spirit. Patience, comfort, joy, and peace are the blessings of hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

[Rom 15:4, 13 NKJV] 4 For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. ... 13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

Hope is the promises made by God to the Jewish fathers of the faith in God. God’s promises are sure and true. He has made covenants with the Jewish fathers of the faith and by adoption into the family of God through Jesus, all who are found in Jesus are partakers in these promises.

[Act 26:6 NKJV] 6 "And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers.

 

Hope is seeking and setting our minds on things above and not things on the earth. Like Jesus did as He faced the cross; for the joy set before us, we can endure the turmoil, tribulation, and chaos of the current world which is passing away. Hope is always keeping our eyes on Jesus and the promises and blessings that are found in Him!

[Col 3:1-4 NKJV] 1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ [who is] our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

[Heb 12:1-2 NLT] 1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God's throne.

[1Jo 2:17 NASB] 17 The world is passing away, and [also] its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.

 

 

Faith is necessary to find true HOPE.

 [Heb 11:6 NKJV] 6 But without faith [it is] impossible to please [Him], for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and [that] He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

[Heb 11:1 NKJV] 1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Faith is what gives us evidence of the invisible, spiritual world.

 “Faith extends beyond what we learn from our senses, and the author is saying that it has its reasons. Its tests are not those of the senses, which yield uncertainty.” (Morris) “Physical eyesight produces a conviction or evidence of visible things; faith is the organ which enables people to see the invisible order.” (Bruce)

Faith is needed for what we can’t see and can’t touch.

Faith goes beyond reason but is not in contradiction or against reason.

Faith is not a bare belief or intellectual understanding. It is a willingness to trust in, to rely on, and to cling to.

 

Only through faith in God, in Jesus, in the Holy Spirit, and in the Bible (the Word of God) can true hope be found because true HOPE is the Lord Jesus. All of the blessings of true hope are found in, though, and because of Him; His death, resurrection, and soon appearing or coming again. Do you want to find hope? Find Jesus. Do you want to be a source of hope to others? Lead them to Jesus!

 

  

Scriptures of Hope, Comfort, and Peace, Encouragement and Joy for times of turmoil and trouble

D.P. Weary

April 2011

 

What is the special “hope, comfort, and peace” that we as Christians are supposed to have? How do we get them? How do we give them to others?

 

Our hope is found in Christ Jesus and His promises to those that believe and trust in Him. It is a hope of obtaining righteousness. It is a hope of salvation and eternal life. It is a hope of His calling. It is a hope of a new world and a new life. It is a hope of the Lord coming for both the living and the dead at the end this current age. It is a hope of exultation in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming. It is the hope that He will help us through the tough times in life. It is the promises that He is our protector and our hiding place in times of trouble. It is Christ that is our hope. It is Christ in us that is the hope of glory. It is the Lord and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace. We have hope because we have been born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. This hope is within us through the Holy Spirit. This hope is God.

 

We obtain hope through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures. We obtain hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. We obtain this hope by giving our lives to God by believing in Jesus the Son and being filled with His Holy Spirit.

 

I.           Hope

Rom 5:1 NASB - Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

Rom 5:2 NASB - through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.

Rom 5:3 NASB - And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance;

Rom 5:4 NASB - and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;

Rom 5:5 NASB - and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Rom 8:25 NASB - But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.

Rom 12:12 NASB - rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer,

Rom 15:4 NASB - For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

Rom 15:13 NASB - Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

2Cr 1:10 NASB - who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us,

Gal 5:5 NASB - For we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness.

Eph 1:12 NASB - to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory.

Eph 1:18 NASB - I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,

Eph 4:4 NASB - There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling;

Col 1:5 NASB - because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel

Col 1:23 NASB - if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.

Col 1:27 NASB - to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

1Th 1:3 NASB - constantly bearing in mind your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the presence of our God and Father,

1Th 2:19 NASB - For who is our hope or joy or crown of exultation? Is it not even you, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming?

1Th 4:13 NASB - But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope.

1Th 5:8 NASB - But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.

2Th 2:16 NASB - Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace,

1Ti 1:1 NASB - Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus according to the commandment of God our Savior, and of Christ Jesus, who is our hope,

Tts 1:2 NASB - in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago,

Tts 2:13 NASB - looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus,

Tts 3:7 NASB - so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Hbr 6:18 NASB - so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us.

Hbr 6:19 NASB - This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil,

Hbr 10:23 NASB - Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful;

1Pe 1:3 NASB - Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

1Pe 1:13 NASB - Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

1Pe 1:21 NASB - who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

1Pe 3:15 NASB - but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;

 

II.        Comfort

The Scriptures admonish us to “comfort and encourage” one another. What is this comfort and how do we “comfort and encourage” others?

 

It is God who comforts us in all our afflictions so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction. This comfort comes through Christ. God comforts us when we are filled with comfort.  The comfort is Jesus working through the Holy Spirit. We are comforted by knowing that God loves us, will never leave us or forsake us, takes care of us, protects us, heals us, provides for us, and whether dead or alive will come for us to take us to be with Him forever at the end of this age. We are comforted when we believe that God has a plan and has made that plan known to those that love Him. We are comforted when we believe that He is always in control no matter what the worldly circumstances look like. We are comforted when we know God’s plan and know the outcome of that plan for it is very good! We are comforted when we know that His Kingdom is coming and that His will, will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. We are comforted when we know that we are citizens of that Kingdom and will sit beside Him upon His Throne to rule and reign with Him for all eternity as His Bride. We are encouraged when we realize who we are in Christ Jesus!

 

Act 9:31 NASB - So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up; and going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it continued to increase.

2Cr 1:3 NASB - Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,

2Cr 1:4 NASB - who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

2Cr 1:5 NASB - For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ.

2Cr 7:4 NASB - Great is my confidence in you; great is my boasting on your behalf. I am filled with comfort; I am overflowing with joy in all our affliction.

2Cr 7:13 NASB - For this reason we have been comforted. And besides our comfort, we rejoiced even much more for the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all.

1Th 4:18 NASB - Therefore comfort one another with these words.

2Th 2:16 NASB - Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace,

2Th 2:17 NASB - comfort and strengthen your hearts in every good work and word.

 

III.     Encouragement

Col 4:8 NASB - For I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know about our circumstances and that he may encourage your hearts;

1Th 3:2 NASB - and we sent Timothy, our brother and God's fellow worker in the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you as to your faith,

1Th 5:11 NASB - Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.

Hbr 3:13 NASB - But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called "Today," so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

Act 20:32 NASB - "And now I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

 

In a world full of strife, turmoil and evil, real peace is a hard commodity to find. Real “peace” is peace in the midst of the storms of life. This peace is not freedom or absence of trouble. This peace is a gift from God to those that love and obey Him. In the world we will have trouble but in Jesus we have peace because He has overcome the world. This peace quiets the troubled and fearful heart. This peace is a gift from the God of hope who fills us with joy and peace in believing, so that we will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. When we are filled with the Spirit we will have love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. God through Jesus has made peace through the blood of His cross. Now the Lord of peace Himself grants us peace in every circumstance because He is Peace. This peace is given and multiplied to us in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

 

IV.       Peace

Jhn 14:27 NASB - "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.

Jhn 16:33 NASB - "These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world."

Act 10:36 NASB - "The word which He sent to the sons of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ (He is Lord of all)—

Rom 5:1 NASB - Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

Rom 14:17 NASB - for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

Rom 15:13 NASB - Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Gal 5:22 NASB - But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

Gal 5:23 NASB - gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Col 1:20 NASB - and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

2Th 3:16 NASB - Now may the Lord of peace Himself continually grant you peace in every circumstance. The Lord be with you all!

1Pe 3:11 NASB - "HE MUST TURN AWAY FROM EVIL AND DO GOOD; HE MUST SEEK PEACE AND PURSUE IT.

2Pe 1:2 NASB - Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord;

 

We give hope, comfort and peace to others by telling them about Jesus. We preach the Gospel, we teach others the Scriptures, we share God’s love with them, we lead them into a loving relationship with Jesus and we teach them about being filled with the Holy Spirit. People get hope, comfort and peace when they are born again and filled with the Holy Spirit.

 

When we have the hope, comfort and peace that come from God through a loving relationship with Jesus, We find true joy. We find joy when we think that the God became a human and loved us so much as to give Himself as a sacrifice for us. Jesus, the angels and we are filled with joy when people give their lives to Him and make Him the Lord of their lives. We have joy when we consider the reward that is stored up for us in Heaven. We find joy when we realize the great authority and power that God has entrusted in us through the Holy Spirit who indwells us. Our joy is made full when we realize the power of prayer. We have great joy in knowing that Jesus has chosen us to be His Bride and to rule and reign with Him for all eternity. It is the God of hope that fills us with all joy and peace. Though we have not seen Him, we love Him, and though we do not see Him now, but believe in Him, we greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory.

V.         Joy

Mat 25:21 NASB - "His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.'

Luk 1:14 NASB - "You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.

Luk 2:10 NASB - But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;

Luk 6:23 NASB - "Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets.

Luk 10:17 NASB - The seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name."

Jhn 3:29 NASB - "He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. So this joy of mine has been made full.

Jhn 15:11 NASB - "These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.

Jhn 16:20 NASB - "Truly, truly, I say to you, that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; you will grieve, but your grief will be turned into joy.

Jhn 16:22 NASB - "Therefore you too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.

Jhn 16:24 NASB - "Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be made full.

Jhn 17:13 NASB - "But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves.

Act 13:52 NASB - And the disciples were continually filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

Act 15:3 NASB - Therefore, being sent on their way by the church, they were passing through both Phoenicia and Samaria, describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and were bringing great joy to all the brethren.

Rom 14:17 NASB - for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

Rom 15:13 NASB - Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Gal 5:22 NASB - But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

Phl 2:2 NASB - make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.

1Th 2:19 NASB - For who is our hope or joy or crown of exultation? Is it not even you, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming?

1Th 2:20 NASB - For you are our glory and joy.

Phm 1:7 NASB - For I have come to have much joy and comfort in your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, brother.

Hbr 12:2 NASB - fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

1Pe 1:8 NASB - and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory,

 

 

Therefore, comfort and encourage one another with these words.

 

Friday, December 16, 2022

THE END OF THE AGE

 

THE END OF THE AGE, THE LAST DAYS, WHAT WILL THEY LOOK LIKE?

D.P. Weary, December 2022

These will be days of TROUBLE. But for the Lord’s people, He will answer them when they cry out to Him. He will protect them. He will hide them in His shelter and conceal them in His tent. He will deliver them. He will be their strength and stronghold and a refuge. His people are to quietly wait for these days to come upon the wicked.

For the wicked, however, the Lord will winnow them and come against them. In these days the sun will become darkness and the moon red like blood. According to the hardness and impenitent heart, these will be days of the wrath of God, and a revelation of the righteous judgment of God.

For those that have made Jesus the Lord of their life, they will be held blameless. He who has begun a good work in them will complete it. Those made righteous because of Jesus’ sacrifice for them will be considered sincere and without offense. They will hold fast to the word of life and rejoice in these days. They will not be shaken in mind or troubled nor harden their hearts as in rebellion but will be bold in these days. Their behavior and their good works will testify about the Lord and led many to the Lord in these days that they may glorify God in these days. God knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment in these days of judgment. The Lord will keep His faithful people from this hour of trial that is coming upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.  The Lord’s faithful people will be saved and delivered from the wrath of God that is to come.

The heavens and the earth are now preserved by God, but they are reserved for fire until the judgment and perdition of ungodly men. For them, these days will come as a thief in the night. Then the heavens will pass away with a great noise and fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Demons will go out performing signs and will gather the kings of the earth to battle.

The Day of the Lord will be a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of great darkness. It is a great and terrible day; who can endure it? It will be a day of decision for multitudes will find themselves in a valley of decision. IT will be a day of battle, a tempest in the day of the whirlwind; a day of doom. It will be a day when the evil done by the wicked will be done unto them. It will be a day of the watchman. It will be a day when God punishes evil kings and princes. It will be a bitter day of wrath, trouble, distress, devastation, and desolation; a day of darkness and gloominess, clouds and thick darkness. It will be a day of trumpet and alarm against fortified cities and high towers. Man’s wealth will not be able to deliver them in these days of God’s wrath.

Before these days, God’s people should seek the Lord, seek righteousness and humility, all who have upheld His justice that they wi8ll be hidden in these days of the Lord’s anger. For in these days, He is like a refiner’s fire and like launderers’ soap. It will be more tolerable for Sodom, Gomorrah, Tyre, and Sidon than in these days of judgment than for the cities of evil and wickedness.

For Israel, the Day of the Lord will be a day of sorrow. He will cover the daughter of Zion with a cloud and cast down the beauty of Israel. Many will be slain by the sword, slaughtered, and not pitied. Only a remnant will survive. It will be a day of doom, trouble, and not of rejoicing. Their silver and gold will not be able to deliver them because of their iniquity. They have not built a wall for the house of Israel to stand in battle on this day. It is a land not cleansed or rained on in this day of indignation. These will be a day of dark clouds, the time of the Gentiles. God will make many peoples astonished at Israel, and their kings afraid when they see God’s sword in Israel on the day of your fall. The children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together under one head. Ephraim shall be desolate for great will be the day of Jezreel. Tumult shall arise and fortresses shall be plundered on the day of battle. It shall be a day of destruction from the Almighty. It will be a day of blowing the trumpet in Zion and sounding an alarm for the day is at hand.

For the faithful remnant in Israel, the Lord will be their support. He will answer them when they call out and the God of Jacob will defend them: He will deliver them and they shall glorify God. He will be their defense and refuge in these days of trouble. They will call upon Him and He will answer them. Though the children of Ephraim will turn back in the day of battle, the faithful will call upon the Lord and He will answer them speedily. The Lord’s people shall be volunteers in these days of God's power. He will cover their heads in the day of battle. But for the wicked, for jealousy, HE will not spare in these days of vengeance. Riches will not profit, but righteousness will deliver from death for deliverance is of the Lord.

The prophet Isaiah tells us the day of the Lord will come upon everything that is proud, and lofty. Everything lifted up shall be brought low. It will be a day of punishment and the desolation in Israel will come from afar. It is a day of destruction from God. It comes cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger. In it, God will destroy its sinner from it. The heavens will be shaken and the earth moved out of her place. There will be a harvest, but it will be a heap of ruins in the day of grief and sorrow. It will be a day of trouble and treading down and perplexity; a day of great slaughter, when the towers fall. This day will be a day of the Lord’s vengeance, the year of recompense for the sauce of Zion. This day will be a day of vengeance and the year of God’s redeemed will come.

God’s people will cry out, “pull our enemies out like sheep for the slaughter. Let them be ashamed and dismayed. Bring on them the day of doom, and destroy them with double destruction. And God will hear them and respond: “I will scatter them and show them the back and not the face in the day of their calamity. The sword shall devour; for I have a sacrifice in the north by the River Euphrates. It will be a day of their calamity and a time of their punishment. I will send winnowers to Babylon, who will winnow her and empty her land.” When bread becomes scarce and good flows away, know that a day of darkness is at hand. For the wicked are reserved for the day of doom. They shall be brought out on the day of wrath for God has reserved them for the time of great trouble; a day of battle and war.

 

But what about all those that have made Jesus their Lord and Savior by faith and have remained faithful to their Lord as these days of great trouble and tribulation begin?

These days are called the beginnings of sorrows and birth pains. There will be wars and rumors of wars. Nations will rise agains5 nations and there will be famines, pestilence, and earthquakes in various places but the end or day of the Lord is not yet.

These days will be days of TROUBLE. But for the Lord’s people, He will answer them when they cry out to Him. He will protect them. He will hide them in His shelter and conceal them in His tent. He will deliver them. He will be their strength and stronghold and a refuge. His people are to quietly wait for these days to come upon the wicked. God will keep them from the days of wrath that are coming upon the people of the earth.

True believers in the Lord Jesus, true Christians must remember:

·         Our hope, our joy, our crown of rejoicing is that we are in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming (1 Thessalonians 2:19).

·         With the trump of God, we who are alive shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air (1 Corinthians 15:51-52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).

·         He has not appointed His Church to wrath (1 Thessalonians 5:9).  The Great Tribulation is defined as the time of the wrath of God, beginning with the breaking of the sixth of the seven seals in the book of Revelations (Revelation 6:12-17).  Also, we see the Church gathered out of every nation before the throne and before the Lamb in the seventh chapter of Revelation (Revelation. 7:9).

·         He shall keep us from the hour of trial that is to come upon the whole earth (Revelation 3:10).

·         The Lord Himself will come for the Church (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17), but angels will gather the Elect or Remnant of Israel at the coming of the Lord (Matthew 24:30-44).

·         Other indications supporting the Rapture of the Church:

·         The Church is mentioned 19 times in the first 3 chapters of Revelation.  From chapters 4 to 19, there is not one mention of the Church.  From 19 on the Church is described as participating in the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, and as being the Bride of Christ, with Him in Heaven.

·         God has not appointed the Church to wrath (1 Thessalonians 5:9; 1 Thessalonians 1:10).

·         The Man of Lawlessness, Antichrist, cannot be revealed until He who restrains is taken out of the way (2 Thessalonians 2:1-9).  The true satanic nature of the antichrist is revealed when he seats himself in the Temple of God, claiming to be God and demanding to be worshiped.  This restraining is related to "our gathering together unto Him" (vs. 1) and the "He" is the Church (the body of Christ, the one new man) functioning as the restrainer of lawlessness (John 16:8-11). Thus, the Church must be removed before Antichrist can be revealed.

·         Jesus taught the Rapture of the Church.  Jesus said, "Whoever believes in Me, although he may die, yet shall he live.  And whoever continues to live (to the time of my coming) and believe on Me shall never die at all (John 11:25-26).

·         Paul taught that:  1) Not all Christians will die.  2) Before those who are alive are Raptured, Christ will raise the dead in Christ into incorruptible new bodies.  3) It will be an instantaneous event.  4) The Rapture will occur at the blowing of the last trumpet (Rosh HaShanah).  5) All believers will be changed, their mortal earthly bodies changed into incorruptible, immortal bodies (1 Corinthians 15:51-54).

  • Old Testament promises of protection in the Day of Trouble or Wrath:  Psalms 27:5; 91:8; Noah, Gen 6; Zephaniah 2:3; Isaiah 26:20; Lot, Gen 19:15-16 and many others.

 

What all of this tells us is that there is going to be a Rapture! The dead in Christ will rise first then we who are alive will rise to meet the Lord in the air (not on the earth). We will arise in our new, imperishable bodies. This catching away of the true Church will occur before the wrath of God is poured out upon the wicked on earth. It will occur before the Antichrist is revealed but possibly after the tribulation of the first five seals of Revelation 6.  We suspect that it does not happen before the sixth seal because the fifth seal tells us that many believers are being killed for their faith during the first five seals. It will probably happen right before or during the great earthquake of the sixth seal of Revelation 6. This earthquake is the first indication the time of the Wrath of God has come. It will possibly occur on and be a fulfillment of, the Feast of Trumpets. It occurs during the fall of the year. It is the true Church’s hope of glory and its finest hour. We are going to the wedding of King Jesus and His Bride, the true Church. We are going to our wedding. The true Church becomes Queen of Heaven, the wife of the King and we will sit with Him on His Throne (Rev 3:21) to reign with Him for all eternity.

 

Therefore comfort, encourage, and build up one another with these words.

                                                         (1 Thes. 4:18)

 

The above narrative is taken from the following scriptures:

THE DAY OF TROUBLE, TESTING, TRIBULATION, WRATH

[Psa 20:1 ESV] 1 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!

[Psa 27:5 ESV] 5 For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will lift me high upon a rock.

[Psa 41:1 ESV] 1 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. Blessed is the one who considers the poor! In the day of trouble, the LORD delivers him;

[Psa 50:15 ESV] 15 and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me."

[Pro 16:4 ESV] 4 The LORD has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble.

[Jer 16:19 ESV] 19 O LORD, my strength and my stronghold, my refuge in the day of trouble, to you shall the nations come from the ends of the earth and say: "Our fathers have inherited nothing but lies, worthless things in which there is no profit.

[Jer 51:2 ESV] 2 and I will send to Babylon winnowers, and they shall winnow her, and they shall empty her land, when they come against her from every side on the day of trouble.

[Nah 1:7 ESV] 7 The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him.

[Hab 3:16 ESV] 16 I hear, and my body trembles; my lips quiver at the sound; rottenness enters into my bones; my legs tremble beneath me. Yet I will quietly wait for the day of trouble to come upon people who invade us.

 

[Act 2:20 NKJV] 20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD.

[Rom 2:5 NKJV] 5 But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God,

[1Co 1:8 NKJV] 8 who will also confirm you to the end, [that you may be] blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[1Co 5:5 NKJV] 5 deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

[Eph 4:30 NKJV] 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

[Phl 1:6, 10 NKJV] 6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete [it] until the day of Jesus Christ; ... 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ,

[Phl 2:16 NKJV] 16 holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.

[1Th 5:2 NKJV] 2 For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.

[2Th 2:2 NKJV] 2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.

[Heb 3:8 NKJV] 8 Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, In the day of trial in the wilderness,

[Jas 5:5 NKJV] 5 You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter.

[1Pe 2:12 NKJV] 12 having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by [your] good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

[2Pe 2:9 NKJV] 9 [then] the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment,

[2Pe 3:7, 10, 12 NKJV] 7 But the heavens and the earth [which] are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. ... 10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. ... 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?

[1Jo 4:17 NKJV] 17 Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world.

[Rev 3:10 NKJV] 10 "Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.

[Rev 6:17 NKJV] 17 "For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?"

[Rom 5:9 NKJV] Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.

[1Th 1:10 NKJV] and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, [even] Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

[1Th 5:9 NKJV] For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

[Rev 16:14 NKJV] 14 For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, [which] go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

 

[Joe 2:2, 11, 31 NKJV] 2 A day of darkness and gloominess, A day of clouds and thick darkness, Like the morning [clouds] spread over the mountains. A people [come], great and strong, The like of whom has never been; Nor will there ever be any [such] after them, Even for many successive generations. ... 11 The LORD gives voice before His army, For His camp is very great; For strong [is the One] who executes His word. For the day of the LORD [is] great and very terrible; Who can endure it? ... 31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD.

[Joe 3:14 NKJV] 14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD [is] near in the valley of decision.

[Amo 1:14 NKJV] 14 But I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah, And it shall devour its palaces, Amid shouting in the day of battle, And a tempest in the day of the whirlwind.

[Amo 5:18, 20 NKJV] 18 Woe to you who desire the day of the LORD! For what good [is] the day of the LORD to you? It [will be] darkness, and not light. ... 20 [Is] not the day of the LORD darkness, and not light? [Is it not] very dark, with no brightness in it?

[Amo 6:3 NKJV] 3 [Woe to] you who put far off the day of doom, Who cause the seat of violence to come near;

[Oba 1:15 NKJV] 15 "For the day of the LORD upon all the nations [is] near; As you have done, it shall be done to you; Your reprisal shall return upon your own head.

[Mic 7:4 NKJV] 4 The best of them [is] like a brier; The most upright [is sharper] than a thorn hedge; The day of your watchman and your punishment comes; Now shall be their perplexity.

[Nah 1:7 NKJV] 7 The LORD [is] good, A stronghold in the day of trouble; And He knows those who trust in Him.

[Hab 3:16 NKJV] 16 When I heard, my body trembled; My lips quivered at [the] voice; Rottenness entered my bones; And I trembled in myself, That I might rest in the day of trouble. When he comes up to the people, He will invade them with his troops.

[Zep 1:7-8, 14-16, 18 NKJV] 7 Be silent in the presence of the Lord GOD; For the day of the LORD [is] at hand, For the LORD has prepared a sacrifice; He has invited His guests. 8 "And it shall be, In the day of the LORD's sacrifice, That I will punish the princes and the king's children, And all such as are clothed with foreign apparel. ... 14 The great day of the LORD [is] near; [It is] near and hastens quickly. The noise of the day of the LORD is bitter; There the mighty men shall cry out. 15 That day [is] a day of wrath, A day of trouble and distress, A day of devastation and desolation, A day of darkness and gloominess, A day of clouds and thick darkness, 16 A day of trumpet and alarm Against the fortified cities And against the high towers. ... 18 Neither their silver nor their gold Shall be able to deliver them In the day of the LORD's wrath; But the whole land shall be devoured By the fire of His jealousy, For He will make speedy riddance Of all those who dwell in the land.

[Zep 2:2-3 NKJV] 2 Before the decree is issued, [Or] the day passes like chaff, Before the LORD's fierce anger comes upon you, Before the day of the LORD's anger comes upon you! 3 Seek the LORD, all you meek of the earth, Who have upheld His justice. Seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden In the day of the LORD's anger.

[Zec 14:1, 3 NKJV] 1 Behold, the day of the LORD is coming, And your spoil will be divided in your midst. ... 3 Then the LORD will go forth And fight against those nations, As He fights in the day of battle.

[Mal 3:2 NKJV] 2 "But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He [is] like a refiner's fire And like launderers' soap.

[Mal 4:5 NKJV] 5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD.

[Mat 10:15 NKJV] 15 "Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!

[Mat 11:22, 24 NKJV] 22 "But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. ... 24 "But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

[Mat 12:36 NKJV] 36 "But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.

[Mar 6:11 NKJV] 11 "And whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!"

 

[Lam 1:12 NKJV] 12 "[Is it] nothing to you, all you who pass by? Behold and see If there is any sorrow like my sorrow, Which has been brought on me, Which the LORD has inflicted In the day of His fierce anger.

[Lam 2:1, 21-22 NKJV] 1 How the Lord has covered the daughter of Zion With a cloud in His anger! He cast down from heaven to the earth The beauty of Israel, And did not remember His footstool In the day of His anger. ... 21 "Young and old lie On the ground in the streets; My virgins and my young men Have fallen by the sword; You have slain [them] in the day of Your anger, You have slaughtered [and] not pitied. 22 "You have invited as to a feast day The terrors that surround me. In the day of the LORD's anger There was no refugee or survivor. Those whom I have borne and brought up My enemies have destroyed."

[Eze 7:7, 19 NKJV] 7 Doom has come to you, you who dwell in the land; The time has come, A day of trouble [is] near, And not of rejoicing in the mountains. ... 19 'They will throw their silver into the streets, And their gold will be like refuse; Their silver and their gold will not be able to deliver them In the day of the wrath of the LORD; They will not satisfy their souls, Nor fill their stomachs, Because it became their stumbling block of iniquity.

[Eze 13:5 NKJV] 5 "You have not gone up into the gaps to build a wall for the house of Israel to stand in battle on the day of the LORD.

[Eze 22:24 NKJV] 24 "Son of man, say to her: 'You [are] a land that is not cleansed or rained on in the day of indignation.'

[Eze 30:3 NKJV] 3 For the day [is] near, Even the day of the LORD [is] near; It will be a day of clouds, the time of the Gentiles.

[Eze 32:10 NKJV] 10 'Yes, I will make many peoples astonished at you, and their kings shall be horribly afraid of you when I brandish My sword before them; and they shall tremble [every] moment, every man for his own life, in the day of your fall.'

[Eze 39:8 NKJV] 8 "Surely it is coming, and it shall be done," says the Lord GOD. "This [is] the day of which I have spoken.

[Hos 1:11 NKJV] 11 Then the children of Judah and the children of Israel Shall be gathered together, And appoint for themselves one head; And they shall come up out of the land, For great [will be] the day of Jezreel!

[Hos 5:9 NKJV] 9 Ephraim shall be desolate in the day of rebuke; Among the tribes of Israel I make known what is sure.

[Hos 10:14 NKJV] 14 Therefore tumult shall arise among your people, And all your fortresses shall be plundered As Shalman plundered Beth Arbel in the day of battle--A mother dashed in pieces upon [her] children.

[Joe 1:15 NKJV] 15 Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD [is] at hand; It shall come as destruction from the Almighty.

[Joe 2:1 NKJV] 1 Blow the trumpet in Zion, And sound an alarm in My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; For the day of the LORD is coming, For it is at hand:

 

[Psa 18:18 NKJV] 18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity, But the LORD was my support.

[Psa 20:1 NKJV] 1 To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble; May the name of the God of Jacob defend you;

[Psa 50:15 NKJV] 15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me."

[Psa 59:16 NKJV] 16 But I will sing of Your power; Yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; For You have been my defense And refuge in the day of my trouble.

[Psa 77:2 NKJV] 2 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord; My hand was stretched out in the night without ceasing; My soul refused to be comforted.

[Psa 78:9 NKJV] 9 The children of Ephraim, [being] armed [and] carrying bows, Turned back in the day of battle.

[Psa 86:7 NKJV] 7 In the day of my trouble I will call upon You, For You will answer me.

[Psa 95:8 NKJV] 8 "Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion, As [in] the day of trial in the wilderness,

[Psa 102:2 NKJV] 2 Do not hide Your face from me in the day of my trouble; Incline Your ear to me; In the day that I call, answer me speedily.

[Psa 110:3, 5 NKJV] 3 Your people [shall be] volunteers In the day of Your power; In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning, You have the dew of Your youth. ... 5 The Lord [is] at Your right hand; He shall execute kings in the day of His wrath.

[Psa 140:7 NKJV] 7 O GOD the Lord, the strength of my salvation, You have covered my head in the day of battle.

[Pro 6:34 NKJV] 34 For jealousy [is] a husband's fury; Therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance.

[Pro 11:4 NKJV] 4 Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, But righteousness delivers from death.

[Pro 16:4 NKJV] 4 The LORD has made all for Himself, Yes, even the wicked for the day of doom.

[Pro 21:31 NKJV] 31 The horse [is] prepared for the day of battle, But deliverance [is] of the LORD.

[Pro 24:10 NKJV] 10 [If] you faint in the day of adversity, Your strength [is] small.

[Pro 27:10 NKJV] 10 Do not forsake your own friend or your father's friend, Nor go to your brother's house in the day of your calamity; Better [is] a neighbor nearby than a brother far away.

[Ecc 7:14 NKJV] 14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, But in the day of adversity consider: Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other, So that man can find out nothing [that will come] after him.

 

[Isa 2:12 NKJV] 12 For the day of the LORD of hosts [Shall come] upon everything proud and lofty, Upon everything lifted up--And it shall be brought low--

[Isa 10:3 NKJV] 3 What will you do in the day of punishment, And in the desolation [which] will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help? And where will you leave your glory?

[Isa 13:6, 9, 13 NKJV] 6 Wail, for the day of the LORD [is] at hand! It will come as destruction from the Almighty. ... 9 Behold, the day of the LORD comes, Cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, To lay the land desolate; And He will destroy its sinners from it. ... 13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, And the earth will move out of her place, In the wrath of the LORD of hosts And in the day of His fierce anger.

[Isa 17:11 NKJV] 11 In the day you will make your plant to grow, And in the morning you will make your seed to flourish; [But] the harvest [will be] a heap of ruins In the day of grief and desperate sorrow.

[Isa 22:5 NKJV] 5 For [it is] a day of trouble and treading down and perplexity By the Lord GOD of hosts In the Valley of Vision--Breaking down the walls And of crying to the mountain.

[Isa 30:25 NKJV] 25 There will be on every high mountain And on every high hill Rivers [and] streams of waters, In the day of the great slaughter, When the towers fall.

[Isa 34:8 NKJV] 8 For [it is] the day of the LORD's vengeance, The year of recompense for the cause of Zion.

[Isa 37:3 NKJV] 3 And they said to him, "Thus says Hezekiah: 'This day [is] a day of trouble and rebuke and blasphemy; for the children have come to birth, but [there is] no strength to bring them forth.

[Isa 61:2 NKJV] 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn,

[Isa 63:4 NKJV] 4 For the day of vengeance [is] in My heart, And the year of My redeemed has come.

[Jer 12:3 NKJV] 3 But You, O LORD, know me; You have seen me, And You have tested my heart toward You. Pull them out like sheep for the slaughter, And prepare them for the day of slaughter.

[Jer 16:19 NKJV] 19 O LORD, my strength and my fortress, My refuge in the day of affliction, The Gentiles shall come to You From the ends of the earth and say, "Surely our fathers have inherited lies, Worthlessness and unprofitable [things]."

[Jer 17:17-18 NKJV] 17 Do not be a terror to me; You [are] my hope in the day of doom. 18 Let them be ashamed who persecute me, But do not let me be put to shame; Let them be dismayed, But do not let me be dismayed. Bring on them the day of doom, And destroy them with double destruction!

[Jer 18:17 NKJV] 17 I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy; I will show them the back and not the face In the day of their calamity."

[Jer 46:10, 21 NKJV] 10 For this [is] the day of the Lord GOD of hosts, A day of vengeance, That He may avenge Himself on His adversaries. The sword shall devour; It shall be satiated and made drunk with their blood; For the Lord GOD of hosts has a sacrifice In the north country by the River Euphrates. ... 21 Also her mercenaries are in her midst like fat bulls, For they also are turned back, They have fled away together. They did not stand, For the day of their calamity had come upon them, The time of their punishment.

[Jer 51:2 NKJV] 2 And I will send winnowers to Babylon, Who shall winnow her and empty her land. For in the day of doom They shall be against her all around.

 

[Job 15:23 NKJV] 23 He wanders about for bread, [saying], 'Where [is it]?' He knows that a day of darkness is ready at his hand.

[Job 20:28 NKJV] 28 The increase of his house will depart, [And his goods] will flow away in the day of His wrath.

[Job 21:30 NKJV] 30 For the wicked are reserved for the day of doom; They shall be brought out on the day of wrath.

[Job 38:23 NKJV] 23 Which I have reserved for the time of trouble, For the day of battle and war?

 

[Mat 24:6 NKJV] "And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all [these things] must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

[Mat 24:7 NKJV] "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.

[Mat 24:8 NKJV] "All these [are] the beginning of sorrows.