Tribulation Judgments: Trib Saints, O. T. Saints, Living Jews, Gentile Nations

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The following article is by Don Stewart, who explains Matt. 25 very well. I think he’s spot on. I can’t find a good video about this, so this post will be all writing. https://www.blueletterbible.org/faq/don_stewart/don_stewart_145.cfm

I would like to add that all the wicked who die are judged at the Great White Throne Judgment which happens after the 1,000 year reign of Christ. This is called the second resurrection. The first resurrection is divided into stages. “I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.” – Rev. 20:4-6

ABOUT DON STEWART

Don Stewart is an internationally recognized Christian apologist and speaker. He graduated cum laude from Talbot Theological Seminary and the International Seminar in Theology and Law in Strasbourg, France, as well as from Biola University. Don is also a best-selling and award-winning author/co-author of over seventy books. His various writings have been translated into over thirty different languages and have sold over a million copies. Don has traveled around the world proclaiming and staunchly defending the Christian faith. My comments will be in bold, except for Bible for Tribulation Saints quotes.

When Jesus returns to the earth at His Second Coming, He will return in judgment. Paul says.

And to give relief to the afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. These will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, separated from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His might (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9).

The Second Coming of Christ will be a time of relief for believers and vengeance for unbelievers.

Who Will Be Judged?

The following people will be judged when Christ returns.

1. Those Living From The Nation Israel

2. The Gentile Nations

3. The Old Testament Saints

4. The Tribulation Saints

QuestionRob from Indiana called to ask Irvin (https://www.endtime.com/ask-irvin/will-israel-saved/), “What does it mean that all of Israel will be saved? Does this mean all Jews or a certain elect of Jews?”

Answer:  That debate is big in Israel in itself; they have a lot of debates over who is a Jew and who is not a Jew. But in my mind when it says all of Israel shall be saved, I think it is referring to all of the people that are living in Israel at the time of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Now we know that two-thirds of Israel is going to be destroyed during the battle of Armageddon and during the Great Tribulation period. The Bible says that God will bring one-third through the fire. Zechariah 13 however, when Jesus comes, that’s when the Jews will run out to meet their Messiah and they will look at His hands and say, “Where did you get these nail prints?” And He will say that He received them in the house of His friends. And this is when they will believe that He is Jesus and that is where you will have this massive shift in Israel and all that have survived the Great Tribulation, the wrath of God.

The church, the body of Christ, will have already been judged and rewarded before Christ returns.

1. The Living From Israel

When Christ returns, He will judge those from the nation Israel, who have survived the Great Tribulation. This judgment is described in Ezekiel 20:34-38. Romans 11 says ALL ISRAEL SHALL BE SAVED. Jesus also illustrates this judgment in Matthew 25:1-30 in the parables of the ten maidens and the ten talents.

Actually, I believe the ten virgins in Matt. 25:1-13 are the 144,000 Jewish missionaries AND their evil clones, cuz half of them don’t make it to the wedding! Jesus, the bridegroom, tells the clones of the 144,000 that he doesn’t know them. I believe these are the 144,000 because they are described as virgins, just like the 144,000 are described in Rev. 14:4 – “These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they have kept themselves chaste. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased from among men as first fruits (the 144,000 are the first fruits of the converted Jewish nation, the first ones in the Jewish nation during the tribulation to be saved) to God and to the Lamb.” They are described as redeemed from the earth in Matt. 14: 3 and the earth often symbolizes Israel. Though Dr. Peter Ruckman feels the 144,000 will be raptured, I don’t think so. I think they will go into the millennium in their mortal bodies because they cannot be killed, because God protects them with a seal and they will participate in the marriage supper that will take place on earth after Christ lands on earth and has defeated and judged his enemies.

The saved Jewish nation will be guests, like bridesmaids, at the marriage supper on earth. This will be a huge worldwide ceremony involving the entire earth. The bride (the church saints in resurrection bodies) will be there. The guests and participants (tribulation saints and saved Jews) will be there. Those that survived the tribulation will be there in mortal bodies. Those that died as martyrs for Jesus, will be there in resurrection bodies.

So this means the Jewish remnant, the one-third that survive, will be saved DURING THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST, WHEN THEY SEE CHRIST IN THE SKY. There will be unsaved Jews right up to the Second Coming, though most of them will have been killed at this point. When the Antichrist has killed the last unsaved Jew (or the last of the Jews that God knows will not accept Jesus as their Messiah), then Jesus will make an appearance in the sky and every living ELECT Jew on earth at that time will see Jesus and accept Him as their Messiah as described in Zechariah 12:10-14 – “I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn. In that day there will be great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the plain of Megiddo (there will be fighting in Armageddon at this time). The land will mourn, every family by itself; the family of the house of David by itself and their wives by themselves, the family of the house of Nathan by itself and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Levi by itself and their wives by themselves; all the families that remain (Romans 11 ALL ISRAEL WILL BE SAVED), every family by itself and their wives by themselves.”

My guess as to the meaning of “the mourning of Hadadrimmon is that the Jews are mourning for the deaths of the unbelieving Jews who died during the Final Battle (who may have been concentrated in the town of Hadadrimmon when they died). The Antichrist got them and killed them! These unbelieving Jews did not recognize their true Messiah as Jesus in time, so they died and went to hell; and the believing remnant are mourning for their lost brothers and sisters (possibly their relatives and friends) who are now in hell. They probably feel responsible for their condemnation and deaths because it took them too long to recognize their Jewish Messiah. At the point when the entire nation recognizes their Messiah, two-thirds of all Jews that had been alive during the tribulation have died.

REGARDING HADADRIMMON: 12:11 Hadadrimmon. Hadadrimmon was a town in the valley of Megiddo (same as Armageddon). The last of the godly kings of Israel and Judah, good King Josiah, was slain by the Egyptian army at Megiddo (II Chronicles 35:20-25), and there was great mourning. There may also be a possible suggestion of great mourning at Armageddon over the multitudes slain there when Christ returns (Revelation 14:14-20) SEE PARAGRAPH ABOVE.

My guess is the Antichrist will have killed all the other Jews (who took his mark) already all over the world using some sort of scanner technology, so that the only unbelieving Jews left are in the Middle East. The unbelieving Jews in the Diaspora would be easily identified and eliminated cuz they took the Antichrist’s mark. The unbelieving and believing Jews in the Middle East and those in the Diaspora who did not take the mark would be the ones still alive at the end. By the time we get close to the salvation of the Jewish nation, the only unbelieving Jews left will be participating in the Final Battle at Armageddon trying to defend Israel and Petra from the Antichrist, because the Final Battle has just started with the last unbelieving Jews (or those not part of the ELECT Jews) being slaughtered by the Antichrist. When the last unbelieving Jew is slaughtered at Armageddon, then Jesus makes an appearance to the entire ELECT Jewish nation from the sky and all the remaining Jews worldwide get saved at once (trust in Jesus as their Messiah).

Regathered

These Jewish survivors (the elect Jews who got saved) of the Great Tribulation will be regathered from all over the world to the land of Israel. This will follow the victory of Christ over His enemies at Armageddon.

The reason I think these will be ELECT Jews is partly cuz of what Jesus said in Bible for Tribulation Saints.

BIBLE FOR TRIBULATION SAINTS: March 9, 2012 Skype with Jesus. JESUS CHRIST GIVES GAIL MORE INSTRUCTIONS ABOUT BRAIN-TO-BRAIN COMMUNICATIONS.

Gail: God’s not finished with the Jews, man. When the tribulation period comes in, he’s going to be dealing with Israel again. (changes subject) I got a question for you, Lord. You know the 144,000 in the tribulation. Are those the only Jews that are going to be saved in the tribulation? That’s what Dr. Ruckman says. That’s kind of discouraging.

JESUS CHRIST: Yes, that’s true.

Gail: Ah, no! That’s true!

Terrance Jenkins: So unfortunate.

[It appears the remnant of Israel that are left when the tribulation period is OVER, will be saved in one day, as it says in Matthew 24:29.]

Gail: Ah, my goodness! Is it because the nation of Israel is in such apostasy right now? That’s so sad.

Terrance Jenkins: Too much apostasy up in this piece.

JESUS CHRIST: Yes, it’s pretty sad.

Gail: Yeah it is. Why is it that I’m Jewish and I accepted you, but the rest of the nation of Israel won’t come to you, Lord? Can you tell me that? I’m just curious. Cuz I accepted you the first time I heard about you. I thought this is such a good deal, I couldn’t turn this down. I don’t understand why the rest of us Jews aren’t coming to you. Brent Spiner’s come to you.

JESUS CHRIST: You’re an exceptional woman, Gail. You have an open heart.



Purpose

The purpose is to determine which individuals will enter God’s kingdom on the earth-the Millennium. CORRECTION: No! All Israel will be saved AT ONCE. They will be gathered to Israel to put them in their rightful homeland for the 1000 year reign of their King Jesus. The righteous from Israel, those who have put their trust in Christ, will enter God’s kingdom. They will experience the long-promised blessings that God has given to that nation.

Unrighteous Sent Away

The unrighteous will be purged from the righteous and sent away. Jesus illustrated this truth in the parable of the talents. Actually, this separation of righteous Jews from unrighteous Jews takes place right before and during the Second Coming or Final Battle, right before Jesus makes his appearance to the entire Jewish nation (which leads to their salvation). The parable of the talents below I think is a reference to the Great White Throne Judgment (after the millennium) and explains how Jesus will judge the unbelieving Jews who did not accept him as their Messiah during the tribulation, referring to the two-thirds who will reject him during the tribulation.

As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 25:30).


Awaiting Final Judgment

Although the Scripture does not say, they (the wicked Jews in the tribulation) will probably be put to death BY THE ANTICHRIST. The wicked Gentiles and wicked Jew clones that are alive when Christ defeats his enemies at the Final Battle, will be judged and will probably be part of the river of blood that goes to the horse’s bridles (Rev. 14:17-20). I don’t think God considers Jew clones to be Jews, so some of them will be alive after the Final Battle. Their final judgment (Great White Throne) does not take place at this time. It will occur after the Millennium, the thousand year reign of Christ upon the earth. If any Jew clones accept Jesus and don’t take the mark, then they would be treated as righteous Gentiles.

2. The Living Gentile Nations

Jesus spoke of judging the living Gentile (non-Jewish) nations at His Second Coming.

When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of his glory All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats (Matthew 25:31,32).

Those Surviving Tribulation

These Gentiles are people who are still upon the earth during the Great Tribulation. They are the living, not the dead. The dead will be raised to judgment in the future. The prophet Isaiah wrote of these.

Even the nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are accounted as dust on the scales; see, He takes up the isles like fine dust. All the nations are as nothing before Him; they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness (Isaiah 40:15,17).

Place

They will be brought to the city of Jerusalem and judged in the valley of Jehoshaphat.

For then, in those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat, and I will enter into judgment with them there, on account of My people and My heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations. They have divided My land, and cast lots for My people, and traded boys for prostitutes, and sold girls for wine, and drunk it down (Joel 3:1-3).

The righteous will enter into God’s Millennial kingdom while the unrighteous will be taken to judgment. Like the unbelievers from the nation Israel, they will probably be killed at this time. They will probably be part of the river of blood that goes to the horse’s bridles (Rev. 14:17-20). Their final judgment is still future.

3. The Tribulation Saints

When Christ returns, those tribulation saints who were killed during the Great Tribulation will also be judged. They will be raised from the dead in a glorified body, receive rewards, and will enter into the kingdom of God. In the Book of Revelation we read.

I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the Word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years (Revelation 20:4-6).


4. Old Testament Saints

There will also be a judgment of the Old Testament saints. They will be raised from the dead and judged. Daniel wrote.

Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt (Daniel 12:2).

Jesus said.

For the Son of Man is to come with His angels in the glory of His Father, and then He will repay everyone for what has been done (Matthew 16:27).


Not Everyone Agrees

Not everyone believes in these different judgments. There are many Christians who do not believe in a literal Millennium, or thousand year reign of Christ on the earth after He comes. They see only one general resurrection at the end of time. All people who have ever been born, both the righteous and unrighteous, will be judged at this final judgment. The resurrection and the judgment of the nations are part of one great judgment.

All Will Be Judged

All Christians agree that everyone, both the righteous and unrighteous, will be judged of God. The righteous will go away into eternal life while the unrighteous will be eternally separated from God. The only difference among believers is the timing of these judgments, not the fact of these judgments.

Summary

When Christ comes back, He will judge the nation Israel, the living nations, the tribulation saints, and the Old Testament saints. He will separate them as a shepherd separates sheep from the goats. The sheep, the believers, will enter into His kingdom, while the goats, the unbelievers, will be sent to judgment. How to find God and Heaven in the Church Age: https://gabriellechana.blog/2017/04/01/how-to-find-heaven-and-god-in-the-church-age/