Saved From The Wrath To Come:
Seven years of tribulation will come upon the world from heaven because of man’s sin against God. The phrase, God’s wrath and the Greek word tribulation are interwoven throughout the Scriptures.
Wrath as coming from God, will give to us a clearer picture of the tribulation that is in store for ALL who have REJECTED the Son of God; unsaved national Israel and the unsaved Gentile nations.
Romans 5:9, “Much more then, being now justified by His (Jesus) blood, we shall be saved from WRATH through Him.”
If anyone can show me anywhere in the following article where the church is to be included in the 7 years of tribulation, please do so.
The sinners works and deeds are seen in,
Galatians 5:19-20. “The works of the flesh are manifest, which are these: Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife seditions, heresies, etc. — and the like — they which do such things shall NOT inherit the kingdom of God.”
Note: They which do these things SHALL NOT inherit the kingdom of God. So what does God have in store for these people and nations?
The following will be accomplished during the 7 years of tribulation to both the unbelieving Jews, and the pagan Gentile nations. The church will be with Christ in heaven.
Wrath: Wraths: 2372. Greek is, thumoo. Past particle, expresses completed action. Mind, soul, as the principle of life, as the seat of the will, desire; or of the emotions, passions. Generally, and in N.T. passion, as in violent commotion of mind, indignation, anger, wrath.
This wrath will come down from heaven, from the hand of God given to the angels of God. “Vengeance is mine; I will repay saith the Lord.”
Spoken of God, and including the idea of punishment, punitive judgments,
Revelation 15:1, “I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.”
Romans 2:8-9, “Unto them that are contentious (self-seeking) and do NOT obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, TRIBULATION and anguish, upon every soul of man that DOETH EVIL, of the Jews first, and also to the Gentile.”
Note, the Church, the body of Christ, has no part in God’s wrath upon the nations; but for the unbeliever lies the direst, furious judgments of God.
Compare the above, Romans 2:8-9, with the following.
Jeremiah 36:7, “It may be they will present their supplication before the LORD, and will return every one from his evil way: for great is the anger and the fury that the Lord hath pronounced against this people (the Jews.)”
Ezekiel 5:13. “Thus shall mine anger be accomplished, and I will cause my fury to rest upon them, and I will be comforted = (avenged) and they (the Jews) shall know that I the LORD have spoken it in my zeal, when I have accomplished my fury in them.”
By the Hebrew prophets, Jehovah is represented as giving to the nations in His wrath an intoxication cup, so that they reel and stagger to destruction; therefore in N.T.
Revelation 14:10, “The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation; and He (the nations, not the church) shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb.”
Revelation 16:19, “And the great city (Rome) was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His (God’s) wrath.”
Revelation 14:8, “And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.”
Revelation 18:3, “For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies (luxury.)”
With wrath implied.
Revelation 15:7, “And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever.”
Revelation 16:1, “And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour the vile of the wrath of God upon the earth.”
Compare Revelation 16:1, with,
Jeremiah 25:15, “For thus saith the LORD God of Israel unto me; Take the wine of thy fury at my hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it.” Compare with,
Isaiah 51:17, “Awake, Awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of His fury; thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung (drained) them out.” Compare with,
Job.21:19-20, “God layeth up His iniquity for His children (Israel:) — His (the children) shall see His destruction, and he (the children) shall drink of the wrath of the Almighty.” Compare with,
Ezekiel 23:31-32-33, “Thou hast walked in the way of thy sister; therefore will I give her cup into thine hand. Thus saith the Lord God; Thou shalt drink of thy sister’s cup deep and large (wide:) thou shalt be laughed to scorn and had in derision; it containeth much. Thou shalt be filled with drunkenness and sorrow, with the cup of astonishment and desolation, with the cup of thy sister Samaria.”
Samaria is the territory occupied by the ten tribes. One sister consists of, Dan, Naphtali, Asher, Issachar, Manasseh, Zebulun, Gad, Ephraim, Reuben, Simeon. The other sister consists of Judah, Benjamine, and the Levites.
Wrath, by a similar figure,
Revelation 14:19, “And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.”
Revelation 19:15, “And out of His (Jesus) mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations (Gentiles:) and He shall rule them with a rod of iron: and He (Jesus) treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of God,”
Here we have it. Tribulation upon the earth comes in the form of God’s fury, this upon the disobedient Jews and the Gentiles.
The second Greek word for wrath is,
Wrath: Greek # 3709. Greek is, arge. pp. The native character, disposition, temper of mind, impulse, impetus. Hence genr. and in N.T. passion, as in any violent commotion of mind, indignation, anger, wrath, especially as including desire of vengeance, punishment.
Romans 12:19, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay saith the Lord.”
Winepress of the wrath of God, in allusion to,
Isaiah 63:3, “I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment.”
The punitive wrath of God, the Divine judgments to be inflicted upon the wicked, as in,
1 Thessalonians 1:10, “Wait for His Son from heaven, whom He (the Father) raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.”
Romans 1:18, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness.”
Romans 2:5, “But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God.”
Revelation 6:17, “For the great day of His (God’s) wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
Luke 21:23, “There shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon THIS (the Jews) people.”
John 3:36, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall NOT see life; but the wrath of God abideth (remains) ON him.”
Romans 3:5, “Is God unrighteous who taketh vengeance?”
Romans 9:22, “What if God, willing to shew His wrath, and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction.”
Ephesians 5:6, “Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.”
1 Thessalonians 5:9, “For God hath not appointed us (the Christian church) to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Revelation 6:16, “Hide us from the face of Him (the Father) that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.”
Revelation 11:18, “The nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the DEAD, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto the servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.”
Here is one part of my challenge to all you mid and post tribulation teachers. Show me one verse that even gives the slightest clue that the Bride of Christ will suffer in the tribulation.
Phil LaSpino www.seekfirstwisdom.com
2 Thessalonians 1:9, “Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power; when He shall come to be glorified in His saints?”
Someone wrote to me and asked, “Is there a difference between the wrath of God, and the vengeance of God?” Are believers appointed to either? In 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9, Paul describes this wrath of vengeance, and sudden destruction of the wicked at Christ’s coming, which believers of course are not appointed, is this correct?
Phil. replied, “The bride of Christ is appointed to neither. Your phrasing of certain key words is incorrect according to Scriptures. “Wrath of vengeance.” Here are two Greek words having two very different meanings. They are not seen together in the Scriptures as you have written them.
Wrath here is a, past particle, expressing a completed action. Wrath as in the seat of the will, the desire, or one’s emotions, and passions. Generally, and in the N.T. passion, as in violent commotion of mind, indignation, anger, and wrath.
So wrath is the emotion, indignation, and anger of the mind-set of God on the wicked. When the bride of Christ is caught away in the air, then He will set into motion, Rom.12:19, “For it is written, vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.”
Picture this. Someone hits you, so you turn the other cheek. They hit you again, and again, and each time you turn the other cheek. After each hit, your anger, and patience begins to wear thin. Finally when that last blow is struck, you react. So it is with the Lord.
Revelation 6-7, The opening of the first 4 seals reveals the four horsemen, who will descend from heaven upon the earth to begin the 7 years of tribulation. But before they begin their appointed task, they are told,
Revelation 7:3, “Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.”
When this has been done, then the four horsemen will begin to deliver what the Lord has reserved for the wicked. Now will the retribution, the vengeance of God be felt on the earth.
Penal is the enacting of punishment as according to God’s law. Retribution, is the repayment, that which is due the wicked.
Lets sum it up: We have God’s mind -set (wrath;) A judicial proclamation (vengeance) determining the reward of punishment, (retribution) that will be sent from heaven on the wicked.
Vengeance as it is used in other verses of the Bible.
Luke 21:22, “These be the days of vengeance.” Note, plural, “days.”
Hebrews 10:30, God said, “Vengeance belongeth unto me.”
Hosea 9:7, “The days of visitation are come.” Visitation, in the sense of vindictive justice, punishment,
2 Thessalonians 1:7-8, “The Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, — In flaming fire taking vengeance (revealing His form of justice) on them that know not God.”
Micah 5:15. “I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the heathen, such as they have not heard (obeyed.)”
You get the idea. When we speak of God’s wrath, we speak of His mind-set. When we speak of God’s vengeance, we speak of the execution of justice.
Phillip LaSpino www.seekfirstwisdom.com