Great tribulation
The term Great Tribulation (Greek μεγάλη θλίψις, megale thlipsis ), also Great Tribulation , Great Tribulation or Great Tribulation , describes in Christian eschatology an expected dramatic end-time phase of hardship that precedes the creation of the new world. The term is used literally in the eschatological speech of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew ( Mt 24,21 EU ) and in Revelation ( Rev 7,14 EU ).
background
The following ideas are connected with this expected time of tribulation: At the beginning there is a covenant that the Antichrist makes with Israel. The duration of the tribulation is assumed to be seven years, based on the 70 year-weeks of the Old Testament book of Daniel ( Dan 9,24-27 EU ). The tribulation is a judgment against the nations and against Israel, and leads to the repentance of the people of Israel, who will recognize Jesus as Messiah at the end of the tribulation .
Affliction is the Lutheran translation of the Greek word thlipsis (θλιψις, which can mean pressure, distress, fear). This word appears 45 times in the New Testament to denote different kinds of need, e.g. B. persecution, prison, war, illness, hunger, but also for fear and sadness.
The great tribulation of the end times, which is spoken of in Matthew ( Mt 24 EU ), Mark ( Mk 13 EU ) and Revelation, is described as a condensation of all these needs, a time of war and natural disasters. In particular, this includes the Seven Seals and the Horsemen of the Apocalypse in Revelation.
Interpretation options
Depending on the interpretation of the eschatological texts, the Great Tribulation is also interpreted differently:
- a symbolic time;
- an incident in the past (e.g. persecution of Christians );
- a divine judgment over the Jews through the conquest of Jerusalem in the year 70 under Titus (see also preterism );
- an event that will come in the near or distant future - in this variant the length of this time is usually given as seven years.
The latter point of view plays an essential role in premillenarianism and especially in dispensationalism , both in theology and in the imagination of believers. Within premillenarianism there are still three interpretations that relate to the relationship between the Great Tribulation and the Rapture of the faithful or the Second Coming of Jesus Christ:
- Believers are raptured to Jesus Christ before the beginning of the Great Tribulation (called pre-rapture doctrine or pre-tribulationism). This view is particularly widespread in the dispensationalist system of teaching and was popularized in wider circles through the series of novels Left Behind .
- The Christians are raptured halfway through, that is, after three and a half years.
- The Christians experience it all the time and are raptured afterwards (called post-rapture doctrine or post-tribulationism).
Some writers teach the partial rapture. It is understood here that only those Christians who are fully faithful will be raptured before the tribulation and that others will pass through the tribulation for purification, most of whom will be martyred .
Various Christian authors refer to only the second half of the Tribulation as the “Great Tribulation”. A distinction is made between the "Tribulation" (seven years) and the "Great Tribulation" (the last three and a half years). The background is that the events described in the Bible are much more dramatic in the second half.
Course and important events of the time of tribulation
In the premillenarian school of thought, the tribulation is basically divided into two sections. In the middle of the time of tribulation, an “abomination of desolation” ( Dan 9.27 EU ) is to be set up by the Antichrist in God's temple. In the first half the prophet Elijah will appear, there will be a worldwide system of government of ten kings with ten kingdoms. Some authors take the view that the number ten can also be interpreted as a small but closed number, in the sense of about ten .
For the first half of the time of tribulation, the authors see the sealed judgments according to Rev 6 EU and the trumpet judgments according to Rev 9 EU . For the second half of the tribulation, the emphasis is on the seven bowls of anger ( Rev 15 EU ).
“In the last series of judgments described here, people are shown the punishment for sin. We can therefore speak of criminal courts. "
Only after all judgments have been completed will Jesus Christ come again ( Rev 19.11–21 EU ) and build up the Millennial Kingdom ( Rev 20.1–15 EU ).
Based on Rev 9:20 ESV , most authors assume that the great majority will not seek God despite the time of tribulation. The others will perish as martyrs in it, but have part in the resurrection. On the other hand, a messia-faithful remnant will emerge from Israel, which is indicated by the symbolic number of 144,000.
literature
- Tim LaHaye, Thomas Ice: Countdown to the world's finals. Image guides for understanding biblical prophecy. Christliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Dillenburg 2003, ISBN 3-89436-370-3 .
- Bible panorama. The seven ages of the biblical path to salvation in twelve colored illustrations with explanations for studying the Bible. 6th edition. Christliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Dillenburg 1982, ISBN 3-921292-00-X .
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum : Handbook of biblical prophecy. 8th edition. Gerth, Asslar 2011, ISBN 978-3-89437-266-8 .
- ↑ David Chilton: The Great Tribulation. Reformatorischer Verlag Beese, Hamburg 1996, ISBN 3-928936-12-3 , p. 12.
- ↑ James Allen: Revelation. (= What the Bible teaches. Vol. 17). Christliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Dillenburg 1999, p. 409.
- ↑ Tim LaHaye: The Rapture. Who Has To Go Through The Tribulation? Christliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Dillenburg 2005, ISBN 3-89436-459-9 , p. 69.
- ↑ René Pache: The Second Coming of Jesus Christ. 10th edition. R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 1985, ISBN 3-417-24553-2 , p. 198.
- ↑ René Pache: The Second Coming of Jesus Christ. 10th edition. R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 1985, ISBN 3-417-24553-2 , p. 200.