The Beginning Of The Tribulation With Its Signs Series

-Tuesday-

Mount of Olives

Jesus Tells of the Future

Matthew 24:9-14, Mark 13:9-13, Luke 21:12-19 (Focal Passage),

PART 5: The Beginning Of The Tribulation With Its Signs

Matthew 24:9-14

9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake.

10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.

11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.

12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.

13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Mark 13:9-13

9 “But watch out for yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You will be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony to them.

10 And the gospel must first be preached to all the nations.

11 But when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not worry beforehand, or premeditate what you will speak. But whatever is given you in that hour, speak that; for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit.

12 Now brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death.

13 And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

Luke 21:12-19 (Focal Passage)

12 But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name’s sake.

13 But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony.

14 Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer;

15 for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist.

16 You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death.

17 And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake.

18 But not a hair of your head shall be lost.

19 By your patience possess your souls.

Now the Lord begins to speak of the time of tribulation. You and I are living in the age of the church or the age of the Holy Spirit, as some people like to speak of it. The Bible divides the world today into three groups of people: the Jews, the gentiles, and the church of God (1 C. 10:32). In this age, God is calling out a people to his name from both Jews and gentiles to compose the third group, the church. It is this third group that will be taken out of the world at the time of the rapture. Then the great tribulation will begin, and I believe that this passage speaks of this beginning.

12 But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name’s sake.

Alternate Translation (NLT): But before all this occurs, there will be a time of great persecution. You will be dragged into synagogues and prisons, and you will be accused before kings and governors of being my followers.

In the preceding section, Jesus had described events immediately preceding the end of the age. Because of His predictions, is seems that His words in versus 12-17 refer not only to the situation which would confront the disciples before the fall of Jerusalem but also to what will confront believers during the time of Great Tribulation. The same kinds of persecution would be present at both times.

Verse 12 is introduced by the expression “But before all these things. . . .” So I believe that verses 12–24 describe the period between the time of this discourse and the future Tribulation Period. His disciples would be arrested, persecuted, tried before religious and civil powers, and imprisoned. This prediction would be fulfilled throughout the entire new dispensation. On the other hand, being handed over to synagogues would occur only at the beginning of this period, for after A.D. 70 (Jerusalem’s fall) the synagogue would lose most of this persecuting power against Christians. The persecution of Christians may feel like failure and tragedy to them, but actually, the Lord would overrule it to make it a testimony for His glory. They were not to prepare their defense in advance. In the crisis hour, God would give them special wisdom to say things that would completely confound their adversaries.