9. What Is the Tribulation?

9

What Is the Tribulation?

I n the New Testament, this present age is characterized by affliction (see 1 Thessalonians 3:3) and many antichrists (see 1 John 2:18). The Tribulation, then, is but an intensification of the satanic design that has corrupted the whole course of this age. The mystery of lawlessness may flower more fully later (see 2 Thessalonians 2:8–9), but it is already at work (see verse 7).

A few years before his passing, Billy Graham warned that the American church’s general “immunity to persecution . . . in the past two or three centuries is unusual.” Christians should get ready to face persecution here as Christians have had to endure it elsewhere.

When Are the Last Days?

When Christians speak of the Great Tribulation, they do not always mean the same thing. In fact, there may be different (but complementary) applications of the image of tribulation in different New Testament passages. Although there may be a special period of intense tribulation just before the end, some passages apply the image of end-time tribulation to believers’ experience throughout this age. Individual believers have suffered and been martyred all through history and many have learned from the examples in Revelation (e.g., overcoming by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony in Revelation 12:11). Sometimes the New Testament reminds us that we are already experiencing end-time tribulation, perhaps as a foreshadowing of the final one.

The New Testament seems to suggest a period of final, particularly intense birth pangs at the very end of the age (see 1 Thessalonians 5:3). Nevertheless, it also speaks of prior events as merely the beginning of birth pangs (see Matthew 24:6–8), which were already occurring even in the first century. Jesus said of those initial birth pangs, “that is not the end” (verse 6).

Jewish people also often spoke of the period of final sufferings as the “birth pangs” of the Messiah, that is, the suffering that would lead to the Messianic age. Thus, it is no surprise that Paul speaks of the entire creation groaning with birth pangs throughout the present age, preparing to birth the new creation (see Romans 8:22). Creation groans, we groan and God’s own Spirit groans (see verses 22–23, 26), yearning for this new creation, which will be birthed in connection with God’s children being raised in glory (see Romans 8:19–23).

The New Testament is often explicit that we are already in the last days. In Hebrews 1:2 and 1 Peter 1:20, Christ’s coming marks the last days. Peter also declared that the outpouring of God’s Spirit on the Day of Pentecost marked the last days (see Acts 2:17). The New Testament repeatedly speaks about the evils of the last days in contexts that show that the writers were referring to the time in which they were already living (see 1 Timothy 4:1; 2 Timothy 3:1; James 5:3; 2 Peter 3:3). Although Paul expected a coming man of lawlessness, he recognized that the mystery of lawlessness was already at work (see 2 Thessalonians 2:7).

Not only were the first Christians already living in the last days but 1 John 2:18 goes so far as to declare, “We know that it is the last hour.” This is because, besides what John’s first audience had heard about a final, future Antichrist, there were already many antichrists (see 1 John 2:18).

When Is Revelation’s Tribulation?

Most important for understanding Revelation in particular is the question of how the book of Revelation portrays the period of tribulation. Daniel spoke of a period of three and a half years (see Daniel 9:24–27; 12:1, 11), but Jesus spoke of Daniel’s “abomination of desolation” (Daniel 11:31; 12:11) as something fulfilled within a generation of His teaching (see Matthew 24:15, 34; Mark 13:14, 30).

Within forty years of Jesus’ teaching, Jerusalem was indeed surrounded by armies, its people carried off captive (see Luke 21:20–24) and its Temple destroyed. Luke says that this period will continue until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled (see verse 24), which might mean until the full number of Gentiles has come in and the Jewish people as a whole turn to faith in Jesus the Messiah (see Romans 11:25–26).

Christian interpreters divide over whether the abomination of the Temple will be repeated in the future. (It seems to have happened more than once in the past; Daniel 11:31 seems to have happened in the second century BC, and Daniel 9:24–27 may have happened in the first century.) But the destruction that Jesus said fulfilled Daniel had already happened by the time Revelation was written. Revelation thus seems to look to something beyond AD 70.

Some interpreters suggest that Revelation is applying the image of tribulation differently, to depict the kind of time more than the length of time. Revelation elsewhere shows that the Lion of Judah (see Genesis 49:9–10) is a slain lamb (see Revelation 5:6) and reapplies other Old Testament images in light of their greater fulfillment in Christ. Plagues from Exodus now appear in more global forms in Revelation 8:7–9, 12; 9:7; and 16:2–4, 10. We do not interpret them as simply describing the plagues that already happened in Moses’ day. Thus “the great city” is called Egypt—recipient of the plagues—but it is also called Sodom and the city where our Lord was crucified (see Revelation 11:8). Geographically, Egypt, Sodom and Jerusalem are not in identical locations nor are they geographically “the great city” Babylon (see Revelation 16:19; 18:10, 21).

Clearly Revelation reapplies some images from past events to events still unfolding or future in its own day. It should not surprise us if Revelation reapplies imagery from Daniel. Thus, for example, Daniel and his three friends were tested for ten days (see Daniel 1:12, 14); the church in Smyrna will likewise be tested for ten days, although with a different outcome (see Revelation 2:10). For that matter, Daniel’s own prophecy of 490 years, from which the final three and a half years of tribulation come, was a prophetic reapplication of a shorter period of time (70 years) prophesied by Jeremiah (see Jeremiah 25:11–12; 29:10; Daniel 9:2, 24–27).

1,260 Days in Revelation 12

Whatever one thinks about the future Tribulation, virtually all Bible readers agree that periods of tribulation are not limited to a future seven-year period. This allows us to recognize that different passages might refer to different times, even if such times are somehow related in God’s plan.

The most critical question for Revelation 12 is what Revelation 12 itself says. Almost everyone agrees that in verse 5, the person caught up to God and His throne to rule the nations with an iron scepter is Jesus. Here are the events that immediately follow in verse 6: “Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she had a place prepared by God, where they would supply her food for 1,260 days.” The 1,260 days seem to begin with Jesus’ exaltation. From the cosmic standpoint, this event also seems to coincide with Satan’s expulsion from heaven (see verse 9). With Christ now at God’s right hand, Satan can no longer accuse us before God (see verse 10). Although the fullness of salvation and God’s Kingdom will come at Christ’s return, verse 10 declares that it has already come in Christ’s exaltation.

Revelation seems to view the entire present age through the lens of the future Tribulation. This need not mean that there is no intensification of tribulation at the end. At the very least, 2 Thessalonians 2:8–12 suggests such a future intensification, led by a revolt against Christ and against the moral demands of the God of heaven. Whether we envision this age through the prism of the final Tribulation or the final Tribulation as merely an intensification of this age, both reflect the same basic DNA.

Revelation 12 does suggest that tribulation is a normal experience for believers in this age. When that is not our experience: Praise God! There is no reason to complain about unexpected blessings! But when it is our experience, we should not be surprised (see 1 Peter 4:12). Revelation reminds us of what Jesus already told us: In this world we shall have tribulation, but Jesus has already overcome the world (see John 16:33).

Christians believe that the promised Messianic King who is yet to come has already come once. His resurrection is the firstfruits of our future resurrection (see 1 Corinthians 15:20, 23), and even though His Kingdom awaits full consummation, it is already at work among us (see Mark 4:31–32; Matthew 13:31–33; Luke 13:19–21). Jesus is already Lord, seated at the Father’s right hand until His enemies become His footstool at His return (see Acts 2:33–35; Hebrews 1:13; 10:12–13).

Thus, we recognize something special about the present time, something that Jesus’ contemporaries assigned to the future. The last days, the end time, have already invaded history. We live in a world that is still travailing and experiencing demonic abuse, but we are the people of the future age commissioned to reveal Christ’s rule in this present age. The Kingdom is both “already” and “not yet.”

In other words, tribulation is the normal experience of believers in this age. Not experiencing affliction is a blessed exception that we should enjoy when we have it, but we should not count on it as if it were our right in Christ. We should always be ready to suffer for Christ and always be ready for Christ’s return.

Overcomers

Four or five of the seven churches directly addressed in Revelation had problems of compromise. Two of the churches, however, were persecuted, and these churches are commended without any reproof. They are like the believers depicted later in Revelation who are suffering; suffering seems to weed out compromising Christians so that those who remain Christians are typically fully devoted to Christ. The persecuted saints in Revelation thus reflect something like the ideal state of the Church.

These believers are Spirit-empowered witnesses for Christ (see Revelation 19:10), speaking for the Lord in the face of persecution, in the midst of life-and-death crises. Such believers are ready to lay down their lives, because of, first, the blood of the Lamb and second, the word of their testimony (12:11).

First, by shedding His blood, Jesus redeemed us from among all peoples (see Revelation 1:5–6; 5:9; 7:14; 13:8), and He also proved that we can overcome by death (see Revelation 5:5–6). Second, these are martyrs on behalf of God’s message and their witness or testimony for Christ, as in Revelation 6:9; their blood, like the Lamb’s, has been shed (see Revelation 16:6; 17:6; 18:24; 19:2). As Jesus was a sacrificial lamb (see Revelation 5:6), so are the martyrs who are depicted as under the altar (see Revelation 6:9), the place where the blood of sacrifices was poured out (see Exodus 29:12; Leviticus 4:7, 18, 25, 30, 34; 5:9; 8:15; 9:9).

That they overcame the devil by the blood of the Lamb and their witness, even in death, means that deliverance in this life is not the only way to overcome. From the world’s perspective, the Beast overcomes God’s servants by killing them (see Revelation 11:7; 13:7). But in light of eternity, staying faithful, no matter what we must face, is true victory. Here are some of Revelation’s promises to the overcomer (which can also be translated, “the victors, the triumphant ones”):

We will eat from the tree of life in God’s paradise (see 2:7).
We will not be harmed by the second death (see verse 11).
We will receive the promised manna and a white stone with a special name (see verse 17).
We will have authority over the nations (see verse 26).
Jesus will clothe us in white garments, He will not blot our names from His Book of Life and He will confess us before His Father and His angels (see 3:5).
Jesus will make us strong supports in His temple, where we will dwell forever; He will write on us the name of God and of the New Jerusalem and His own new name (see verse 12).
Jesus will seat us with Him on His throne, just as He overcame and sat with His Father on His throne (see verse 21).
We will worship before God’s throne (see Revelation 15:2).
We will inherit the perfect new creation, and God will be our God, and we will be His sons and daughters (see Revelation 21:7).

Remembering these promises about the future can strengthen us when we must endure temporary tests in the present.

Post-Tribulational Paranoia

This observation invites us to challenge a mistaken approach held by some others who believe that the Church will go through the Tribulation. Some people are afraid of the Antichrist. Confident that the final Tribulation is just around the corner, some believers stockpile food and ammunition and want to flee into the mountains.

But the “wilderness” in Revelation 12:6 probably symbolizes this entire age. It evokes Israel’s experience of depending on God in the wilderness. Just as manna-dependent Israel could not stockpile food in the wilderness, neither do God’s people in Revelation 12; instead, God provides for them (see verse 6). Moreover, we see God’s servants in Revelation suffering to bring the Good News of Christ to others, never fighting back with physical weapons (see Revelation 6:9–10; 12:17; 13:7, 10). (They do receive divine vindication, some of it sooner and some of it later; see Revelation 6:11; 11:5–6, 11–13; 16:5–6; 19:21.)

That does not mean that we should not be prepared for emergencies. In 2017 and 2018, for example, in the United States hurricanes devastated Puerto Rico and Florida and flooding devastated Houston. Earthquakes, impassible snowstorms, power failures or other emergencies will strike, so it is simply prudent to have some supplies on hand.

Yet some emergencies may require more than short-term emergency supplies, and these may be harder to prepare for. If the power grid or transportation infrastructure collapse, our Amish neighbors will be among the best prepared. If some area is bombed or invaded militarily, Jesus’ advice to His followers in Judea normally would also stand us in good stead: Value life over possessions and flee the safest way (see Matthew 24:16–20).

But most readers of our book are not in this kind of crisis situation right now. Revelation shows us that whenever possible, we believers should be seeking to share our faith with nonbelievers rather than running away from them. In times of crisis, the comfort and healing that our faith can provide others are all the more needed. Our normal posture should be to continue to testify about Jesus, “even when faced with death” (Revelation 12:11 NASB ). If we truly believe the Gospel, then we believe that, if a choice becomes necessary, ultimate victory comes more by leading others to life in Christ than by preserving our lives in this world.

Such courage to be bold for Christ requires confident faith, and such confidence to testify comes from the Holy Spirit. If we lack such confidence, the solution is not to cower in fear. It is to pray for a deeper empowerment of God’s Spirit in our lives. In Luke 11:13, Jesus promises us this power if we request it from the Father. In Luke’s sequel volume, the book of Acts, we see that outpourings of the Spirit often followed prayer (see Acts 1:14; 2:4; 4:31; 8:15). May God empower all of us ever more deeply with His Spirit!

Why are we not afraid of the Antichrist? Because greater is the Spirit who dwells in us than the spirit of antichrist that is in the world (see 1 John 4:1–6, especially verse 4).

End-Time Revival? Along with Suffering

New Testament pictures of the end time, perhaps what believers should almost expect as normal , speak of both apostasy and preaching the Gospel. In times of crisis, those who are not serious about their faith fall away, whereas those who are truly committed to Christ share the Gospel (see Matthew 24:10–14; cf. 1 Timothy 4:1; possibly 2 Thessalonians 2:3). If this is the case, having a big church with lots of members and programs, valuable as it might be, is not the end goal by itself. Churches need to help members grow as strong disciples of Christ who can stand firm and share their faith with others no matter what comes their way.

Suffering comes to everyone, believers or not, but persecution for Jesus’ name is specific to His followers. Yet Jesus’ promise of persecution is only for His real followers, not for those who hide their faith (see Mark 8:34–38). We face persecution for His name (e.g., Matthew 5:11; Mark 13:13; 2 Timothy 3:12), and this even becomes an opportunity to share our faith further (see Mark 13:9–11). New Testament pictures of end-time martyrs associate their suffering with end-time preaching of the Good News to all peoples (see Matthew 24:14; Revelation 6:9; 20:4).

If by end-time revival we mean disciples of Jesus radically devoted to Him and the Gospel going out to all peoples, we should indeed expect it. This is, in fact, what the Church should be experiencing at any time in history, although in most of history it has not been true of most of the Church. When the Gospel spreads, the Church usually becomes established and grows, too, whether immediately or after ground has been broken.

Some, however, have unrealistic ideas about end-time revival. They suggest that everyone will be converted before Jesus’ return. With Jeremiah, we are tempted to say, “Yes indeed! May the Lord do this! May the Lord establish what you have said!” (Jeremiah 28:6). But, as in Jeremiah’s day, the Lord has really been calling for something less pleasant, and the burden of proof is on the one with the pleasant words (see verses 7–9). Unrealistic optimism underestimates the evil that is present in the world; when crushed by brutal realities such as World War I, such misplaced hopes have sometimes given way to shattered faith. Revelation depicts some people from all nations worshiping Jesus (see Revelation 5:9; 7:9), but it also depicts others from all nations worshiping the Beast (see Revelation 13:7).

One extreme sector of charismatic Christians even claims that true disciples will have such faith that they will achieve superpowers as “manifested sons.” This extreme manifested sons teaching commits an error similar to pre-Tribulationalism by sundering suffering from glory. It wrongly separates the glorification of our bodies from Christ’s ultimate triumph and the new creation of which our glorified bodies are a part. Creation longs for glorification of God’s children because restoration of our bodies is simultaneous with the restoration of, or at least the beginning of the restoration of, creation, when Jesus descends from heaven with a shout (see Romans 8:17–23; Philippians 3:20–21; 1 Thessalonians 4:15–17; 2 Thessalonians 1:5–10). Expectant faith is good, and God does perform signs and wonders to honor His Word. But His Kingdom is already/not yet; some aspects of it, such as the permanent resurrection of our bodies, certainly await Jesus’ return.

Jesus is the hero we honor. Jesus’ power is perfected in our weakness, and we live for His glory alone. Jesus is honored by our perseverance in testing as well as by what the world considers victories. In Revelation, the world’s perspective on victory includes the Beast overcoming God’s servants (see Revelation 11:7; 13:7). From heaven’s perspective, however, it is those who resist the Beast, even to the point of martyrdom, who are truly victorious (see Revelation 12:11; 15:2). Just as Jesus overcame by being faithful even to the point of death (see Revelation 5:5), so do we. Those who overcome, who are faithful to the end, will inherit the world to come, as children of God (see Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21; 21:7).

None of this is meant to play down expectation of, or work toward, the end-time completion of the Gospel reaching all peoples (see Matthew 24:14; 28:19–20; Romans 11:25–26; Revelation 7:9). Likewise, God certainly is eager to demonstrate His glory with signs and prophetic boldness as we carry forth His Good News. That is not something just for the end of the age; ideally it is for any time believers are fully yielded to God’s Spirit and God’s calling, most often expressed in times of what we call revival. But insofar as the Church has often failed, surely God does want a generation that will show even the rulers in the heavenly places what His plan for His people looks like (see Ephesians 3:10; 4:11–13). Yet that plan is not simply about success. It also embraces faith that reveals God’s power in the midst of suffering, as Christ’s cross did.

The Two Kingdoms

The book of Revelation contrasts two cities, which it depicts as two women. (This depiction is not sexist, by the way. Ancient coins and literature also portrayed cities as women, and the Old Testament depicted Israel as a faithful or unfaithful wife. Thus, everyone would have understood the image.) The city of the world, Babylon, is depicted as a prostitute. By contrast, the New Jerusalem is depicted as Christ’s Bride. Those who live for the temporary gratification of this age’s desires cling to the prostitute; those with faith keep themselves pure for Christ in view of the coming age and will be Christ’s Bride.

Not following Babylon does not mean that we oppose the world in every sense. God sent His Son to save the world (see John 3:16–17), and we should love the people in the world. Jesus ate and drank with those whom religious people considered sinners (see Mark 2:15–17). Paul used the language and customs of his day to reach people for Christ, and he even had supporters who were leading officials of a Roman province (see Acts 19:31). But we cannot compromise with the world in the sense of its values that distract from or oppose God and His values of justice, mercy and righteousness.

With good reason, many scholars identify Rome as the Babylon of John’s day. Rome annually celebrated its founding on seven hills or “mountains,” and regularly called itself the city on seven hills (see Revelation 17:9). Of the empires that ruled other kings (see verse 18), it was the one that John’s audience knew best. It was a naval power (at that time the world’s only significant one) that traded in the very imports listed in Revelation 18:12–13. Rome even had an emperor who persecuted Christians, Nero, who had died yet was widely expected to return (cf. Revelation 13:3; 17:10–11). (Coincidence or not, “Nero Caesar” spelled in Hebrew does come out to 666 when calculated as a number in the traditional way.) Most importantly, Rome destroyed the Temple and enslaved God’s people as Babylon had done, so many Jewish people already envisioned Rome as a new Babylon. Indeed, they usually understood Daniel’s fourth human kingdom, a successor of Babylon, as Rome (see Daniel 2:40–43; 7:6, 23).

But the spirit of Babylon outlived Rome. Just as Rome was an evil empire like the earlier Babylon, evil continues to flourish in the world. John himself probably recognized this, because he would have understood his vision in Revelation 13 in light of what he knew from the Old Testament. His contemporaries understood Rome to be the fourth beast of Daniel 7, the evil empire just before the coming of the Son of man. But Revelation 13:1–7 blends characteristics of all four beasts. It is thus more than Rome alone: It is the spirit of evil empire.

John prophesied from the island of Patmos, where he had been banished for preaching God’s message (see Revelation 1:9). The Roman Empire was the most powerful empire that his part of the world had ever known, and it seemed poised to crush the Church, which may have then constituted less than one-tenth of one percent of the empire. Yet in Revelation 18:2–3, John, using the language of earlier biblical prophets, pronounces a funeral dirge over Babylon!

History proved John right. The Roman Empire fell over a millennium and a half ago. The evil empires of the past now lie in the dust, yet the Church of Jesus Christ has now spread more widely than ever before. So why should anyone put trust in any mortal kingdom of our day? Let us live instead for the one Kingdom that will last forever, the Kingdom of Christ and of God!

May we awaken to live for Christ alone—not slumber like the churches of Sardis or Laodicea, surrounded by worldly comforts. We should learn from suffering churches, such as those in Smyrna and Philadelphia, and our brothers and sisters who suffer for Christ today in northern Nigeria, North Korea, Eritrea and other locations.

Of course, churches that are not persecuted so much have opportunities and resources that suffering churches lack, and we can work to provide for them. But we have much to learn from them, lessons learned less from books than from enduring fiery trials. The promise of Christ’s coming was an encouragement to the suffering churches of Smyrna and Philadelphia, but a dire warning to the sleeping churches in bed with the values of the same world system that was killing their brothers and sisters elsewhere (see Revelation 3:2–3, 17; 16:15).

The Spirit of Antichrist Is Already Here

A Rapture before the Tribulation cannot by itself deliver us from the fear of tribulations or antichrists, which are not reserved solely for the future. Throughout Revelation, people are identified by markers recounted to or seen by John. Thus, the righteous have a name on them (see Revelation 3:12; 22:4); Babylon has a name on her, although she is figurative (see Revelation 17:5); Jesus comes back with a name on Him (see Revelation 19:16). The righteous are sealed to be protected from judgments (see Revelation 7:3–4), recalling how God invisibly marked the righteous to protect them before judgment in Ezekiel 9:4–6. (A pre-Christian Jewish source called the Psalms of Solomon also speaks of God invisibly marking both the righteous and wicked to distinguish them.)

The mark in Revelation that commands the most attention on the popular level today is the mark of the Beast (see Revelation 13:16–18). But whatever this mark might or might not mean for the future (speculations abound), it has a lesson for us today. Followers of the Beast conform to his ways, recognizing that they cannot prosper in this life without being part of his system (see Revelation 13:17). Their concern is not with promised hidden manna or fruit from the tree of life (see Revelation 2:7, 17; 22:2, 14, 19), but only with getting ahead in this life.

Because there are no chapter divisions in the original, Revelation offers a striking contrast between those who live for this world and those who live for the world to come. People are marked either with the name of the Beast (see Revelation 13:17) or the name of the Lamb (see Revelation 14:1; cf. 13:16–14:1). The promised world to come is worth any price in this world. We might not yet be in the final throes of the Tribulation under the final Antichrist, but the examples in Revelation warn us that ultimately there are only two sides. We either faithfully follow the Lamb or, by default, we follow what the world demands of us.

It is not hard to imagine many antichrists in this world, and not only in the future. First John applies the title to those who teach against the true Jesus who came in history, who is God’s Son, the Messiah (see 1 John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 John 7). The mystery of lawlessness is already at work (see 2 Thessalonians 2:7), and even now there are many antichrists (see 1 John 2:18).

In times of peace we sometimes find it hard to believe biblical warnings about the antichrists and demonic evil. Nevertheless, there is no reason to doubt that the final Antichrist will be terrible and demonized. Because Satan does not know the final hour (see Mark 13:32), he must always have an antichrist in waiting. And because he does not know the final hour, Satan has already shown his hand. One need think only of a recent antichrist figure who succeeded on a local level and nearly succeeded on a global level: Adolf Hitler.

A generation ago, within the lifetime of the authors’ parents, Nazi ideology included religious elements, featuring Hitler as the new savior. Many Aryan supremacists worshiped a false, non-Jewish Jesus, utterly different from the real Jesus of history. Both liberal and nationalist elements of the state church had paved the way for this false Jesus. Hitler believed that Jesus had started fighting against the Jews, and Hitler would complete that mission. Of course, Hitler’s religion diverged starkly from Scripture; with his emphasis on Aryan purity, he honored Teutonic gods and semidivine Norse heroes.

An internal Nazi document from 1943 shows that the leaders of the Nazi party planned to abolish all denominations in 1945 and hail Hitler as the new Messiah. (Certain religions, such as Hinduism and Islam, would have been exempted from this requirement “for political reasons.”) Hitler’s promised “thousand-year Reich” allegorized and twisted the millennium of Revelation 20. This thousand-year reign, with Hitler as the new Messiah, could begin only after the binding of Satan (see Revelation 20:2)—which Hitler understood as the extermination of the Jews, whom he considered to be subhuman and mixed with demonic blood. That was why, even after the Allied invasion of Normandy, Hitler diverted military resources to expedite the liquidation of Jews in the death camps. (Hitler also was killing Gypsies, homosexuals and other groups he considered subhuman.)

Hitler and antichrist figures like him reflect the selfish character of Satan, grasping for power to exploit others. Jesus, by contrast, modeled serving others even to the point of laying down His life for us. In the end, Hitler and others like him have always failed, though often after bringing about the deaths of thousands or even (in Hitler’s case) millions of other people. In the end, God’s truth was always vindicated against Satan’s lies that brought so much suffering, even if people did not recognize it.

Each of these antichrist rebellions and their ultimate failures foreshadows the end. How will we know which antichrist and which tribulation are the final ones without knowing the time of Christ’s return? The final time of testing will be final not only because it will be terrible, but precisely because it will be final . Christ’s return will vindicate truth permanently and establish peace for humanity, and it will be a public and universal event rather than some individual gaining political or religious support to claim messiahship.

Satan’s strategy is not difficult to envision in a demonic parody of the Kingdom such as Hitler’s. The Nazis honored northern, Aryan gods; they were able to bend to their will much of the state church, where many already doubted claims of the Bible or interpreted it quite erroneously. Racism and genocide dehumanized and murdered people made in God’s image. And if Satan could eliminate the Jewish people, biblical prophecies of the Jewish people’s restoration could not be fulfilled; thus, Satan worked against the true God and the people He had chosen for His purposes.

But Satan’s long-range plans did not depend only on one man, Adolf Hitler. Racism and ideas of racial supremacy allowed some to dehumanize others and produce slaughter on a massive scale never before witnessed in human history. Satan’s work did not start only with Hitler, who was shaped by the race ideas of others. He also was able to draw on earlier models, such as the Turkish genocide against Armenians, U.S. internment camps for Native Americans and the 1904 German genocide that brutally murdered tens of thousands of members of two tribes in southwest Africa.

In the last-mentioned case, Germans forced survivors of their massacres, including women, children and the elderly, into slave labor in concentration camps, where the mortality rate was somewhere around fifty percent. (Such exploitation had earlier histories with King Leopold of Belgium in the previous generation in the Belgian Congo, and the earlier international slave trade proliferated by Arabs and developed by Europeans.) A German anthropologist performed medical experiments on African prisoners to study race, and Germans shipped roughly three hundred skulls to Germany for experiments to prove Aryan superiority.

Hitler knew that his predecessors had gotten away with these actions and had little reason to doubt that he could do the same. This was done by supposedly “progressive, civilized” nations that did not recognize how sin had warped their thinking.

The spirit of lawlessness has been among us for a long time, and so has tribulation. The good news is that if we are sufficiently committed to Christ to overcome and to serve Him in present trials, we need not fret about future ones. They may amplify what we have faced before, but God’s power already with us will enable us to overcome and to serve Him then, too. Why are we not ultimately afraid of the Antichrist? Because Jesus Christ is Lord.

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