Webmaster's note: This is not an exhaustive list of terms. I will update this list as time permits. This article was written in the summer of 2001. Updated May 21, 2005.
This is a period in Scripture defined as seven literal years. This period is also found mentioned in days as well., In this period, is a series of judgements of God. The main purpose of judgement in this period is to revive Israel. The Great Tribulation is also called, " The Day of God's Wrath" and "The Day of Jacob's Trouble", in Scripture. Also to judge the world for rejecting Jesus Christ, with the goal of reviving them and Israel to Jesus. There will be a great awakening in Israel (Revelation 7). However, there will still be people during and after this period that will STILL reject Jesus. There will be a series of three judgements during this period; the trumpet judgements, the seal judgements and the bowl or vial judgements. There are seven judgements per series. Each of them become more intense than the last as the seven year period unfolds. Much of the world is wiped out at the end of this period.
The term rapture is derived out of 1 Thess 4. The word rapture is not found in the English language Bible. This terminology is carried forward from the time of Jerome. He was a scholar who translated the Bible from it's original languages into Latin. When he translated 1 Thess 4:17, the word he used was rapturos. In the English, that was translated caught up, in the Greek, hupotasso. The rapture is an event that God takes His Church by force, will be given new heavenly bodies or translated. The believer, who is alive at that time, will not experience death. This will happen before the Great Tribulation. There is great evidence in 1 Thess 5, when Paul says that we will never see the Day of Wrath. 2 Thess 2 also points that out as well.
The Second Coming of Christ will happen at the end of the Great Tribulation (Revelation 19), in which He will set His Kingdom on earth and His saints will reign. He will come back with His Chruch. That is those that have been raptured and those that died in Christ.
The 1000 year period that begins after the Second Advent of Christ upon which Christ and His Chruch will reign. Some people who survived the Great Tribulation will be in this reign. They will not be translated as the Christians before the Great Tribulation. At the end of the 1000 year reign, these Christians will be tempted by satan one more time.
This is the judgement seat from which God Himself will judge all the unbelievers from all the ages. The Scriptures say that these unbelievers are awaiting in hell. Those that died don't go into eternal bliss, soul sleep or limbo. Scriptures says that people either go, immediately after death, to the presence of Jesus or hell. Those unbelievers go into hades to await judgement. After they are judged at the Great White Throne Judgement, they are bound hand and foot and thrown into the Great Lake of Fire, that burns for eternity. Now the question is "why will unbelievers be judged?" The answer simply is that God is Just. He will give them an opportunity to speak up for what they have done. God, because He has given the unbeliever several opportunities to accept Christ as their Lord and Savior during their lifetime, will then show them what they have done wrong. That is, they rejected Jesus Christ. Satan and his angels (demons) will go to the Lake of Fire, as well. Incidently, hell and the lake of fire were not prepared for man. Nowhere does Scriptures indicate that they were prepared for man. If man decides to reject Christ, he will go there as well.
In Revelation 21, this term is seen. In 2 Peter 3, the entire universe is dissolved in an instant. Some scientists who are Christians (not to be confused with christian scientologists) believe that God will simply remove His Presence from the universe and there will be a mass explosion beyond what is known about nuclear explosions, and universe will be dissolved. **This is just a theory that is biblically based and is worth mentioning.
I believe that the Earth will remain intact and the "earth" we stand on and the atmosphere will be cleansed with fire and restored to it's original "Garden of Eden" form. I believe God will want to give His people the very best and the earth and sky in it's present form is far from the very best of God.
All of the sudden, a new heaven, a new earth and new Jerusalem will appear. This will be the new resting place of the saints, from the OT and NT.
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