Many people have been claiming that we are already in the Tribulation period. With all the crazy things going on in this world I can see why they would think so, but biblically we have not reached that point yet. These are only the “birth pangs”, the beginnings of what will come; during the Tribulation period things will be so much worse. Let’s take a walk through the Tribulation period, from the seals to the trumpets to the bowls or vials.
The seven seals:
seal 1: The White Horse- this horse signifies the appearance of the Antichrist and his rise to power through talk of peace, but his true goal is conquest.
seal 2: The Red Horse- this horse signifies war, this makes sense for this horse to follow the Antichrist’s rise to power. Once he has power he will bring war to all that stand against him.
seal 3: The Black Horse- this horse signifies famine, this is also logical since famine inevitably follows war. The areas that are affected have little left over and if war is brought to a country that supplies much of the food for the world, you can see how this would cause famine in many places.
seal 4: The Pale Horse- this horse signifies pestilence and death, this is a logical progression as well. War, famine, disease and death all go hand in hand.
seal 5: The martyrs under the altar- they are asking God to judge those that killed them to avenge their deaths. They are told to wait until their full number was in. God assures the martyrs that they will be avenged, but they must wait until everyone is given the chance to turn to God.
seal 6: A great earthquake will strike the earth,the sun will turn black and the moon red and stars will fall to the sky, the heavens recede and every mountain and island is moved from its place. At the opening of this seal the people of earth know that this is God’s judgment on them yet they refuse to repent and turn to Him, instead they blame God for what is befalling them.
Between the 6th and 7th seals the 144,000, 12,000 from each of the tribes of Israel are sealed with God’s seal to keep them from harm.
seal 7: When this seal is opened there is silence for half an hour in heaven. Seven trumpets were given to the seven angels that stand before God. Before they begin the next series of judgments another angel appears with a golden censer filled with incense, the angel fills the censer with fire from the altar and hurls it to the earth. This causes thunder, lightning and an earthquake.
Trumpet 1: Hail and fire mixed with blood fall to the earth and burn 1/3 of the earth, trees and grass are burned up. This is God’s judgment on the land.
Trumpet 2: A large mountain on fire is thrown into the sea, 1/3 of the sea turns to blood and 1/3 of the living creatures die and 1/3 of the ships are destroyed.This is God’s judgment on the sea.
Trumpet 3: A star falls from the sky onto the springs and rivers, the star is called Wormwood and causes 1/3 of the waters to turn bitter and many die from drinking it. This is God’s judgment on the fresh waters.
Trumpet 4: 1/3 of the sun, moon and stars are turned dark; a third of the day and night was completely dark. This is God’s judgment on the sky.
Before the final three trumpets are sounded an eagle flies by saying “woe” to those of the earth because of the final three trumpet blasts to come.
Trumpet 5: A star falls from the sky, (probably and angel) he is given the key to the abyss. When he opens it smoke rises from it and releases locusts that were given the power to sting like a scorpion. They were not allowed to harm anything on the earth except those people that did not have God’s mark on their foreheads. They were allowed to torment the earth for five months. Their king was the angel of the abyss, Abaddon or in Greek, Apollyon.
Trumpet 6: This releases the four angels that were bound at the Euphrates river, they were released to kill 1/3 of mankind. They killed with fire, smoke and sulfur.
Before the final trumpet is blown there is a time when there will be two witnesses that will prophesy in Jerusalem. They are given the power to shut off the rain and to kill anyone that tried to harm them with flame from their mouths. They prophesy 1260 days, half the tribulation period before they are killed. Their bodies will lie on the street for 3 1/2 days and the entire world will celebrate their deaths. After 3 1/2 days they will rise from the dead and ascend to heaven. At this point there will be a massive earthquake that will cause a tenth of the city to collapse.
Trumpet 7: At the sound of this trumpet it is announced in heaven that God has retaken the world. This signifies the final judgments and the halfway point of the Tribulation period; this last 3 1/2 years will be so bad that it is called the Great Tribulation. At the end Jesus will triumph over Satan.
Bowl 1: This bowl is poured out onto the land, festering sores broke out on those that have taken the mark of the beast
Bowl 2: This bowl is poured out on the sea, the entire sea turns to blood and all creatures in it die.
Bowl 3: This bowl is poured onto the rivers and springs, they turn to blood
Bowl 4: This bowl is poured onto the sun and the sun scorched people with fire
Bowl 5: This bowl is poured onto the throne of the beast and his kingdom is plunged into darkness. There is absolutely no light, so dark that it causes physical pain.
Bowl 6: This bowl is poured out onto the Euphrates river so that it dries up to prepare the way for the kings of the east. Three spirits go out into the world to gather the world for the final battle at Armageddon.
Bowl 7: This bowl is poured out into the air. Once this has occurred a voice from the throne says “It is done!” A worldwide earthquake larger than anything that has ever happened occurs. Jerusalem is split into three parts. nations collapse, every island is gone and all mountains are destroyed, hailstones weighing 100 lbs fall from the sky crushing people. The Antichrist’s kingdom of Babylon is destroyed.
At this time Jesus will return for the final battle with Satan where Satan will be defeated and thrown into the pit.
How will you know when the Tribulation begins?
25 “Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One,[f] the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. 26 After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing.[g] The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood:War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’[h] In the middle of the ‘seven’[i]he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple[j] he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him. Daniel 9:25-27
The Tribulation begins when the Antichrist makes a covenant with Israel for seven years of peace. If you look at Israel right now you will see that we are not at that point and there is not a one world ruler so we have not entered the Tribulation period yet. But I do not think that the time is far off when this will start, if you are watching world events things are lining up for the War of Gog and Magog that is described in Ezekiel and also the destruction of Damascus in Isaiah 17. For those that do not have a relationship with Jesus, it is not too late. You can see the way the world is changing and all the things that are falling into place biblically, do you want to leave yourself in the position of going through the Tribulation? Check out this former post I wrote and the simple prayer that you can pray at the bottom.
Maranatha!
Bible Prophecy 