What is the purpose of the Great Tribulation?

Question

What is the purpose of the coming great tribulation? Who is this supposed to effect?Will the church go through the tribulation? and how will this effect Israel?Is the tribulation post rapture? If so what happens to those who miss the rapture that were supposed to be christians. Answers to all or parts are appreciated

Answer 1

"What is the purpose of the Great Tribulation? "

Man has the ability to trust in things other than God. It's built in. What the Great Tribulation does is take away the 'Comfort Zone'. Will electricity be connected after the earthquakes? Will people mind being inducted to armies? Will they be okay with disasters that are changing the planet, and the moon being a different color along with the sun? I don't think so.

So what will they do without all the comforts of home? Will they begin to look around and see that there is nothing they can do about certain things? Can they figure what happened when people got stung by a creature that no one's ever heard of and could not die in that time even though they wanted to?

"Who is this supposed to effect?"
Anyone, everyone who is still on Earth.

"Will the church go through the tribulation?"
You will get a lot of different answers on this question if there are enough people here. But I say no. The church will not be here for that. The rapture of the church will occur before.

"and how will this effect Israel?"
I look to Daniel 11, Ezekiel 38 and 39, Zechariah 12, 13, and 14. The Antichrist will form a peace pact with Israel. Read those chapters and you will get aqn idea of how they are affected.

"Is the tribulation post rapture?"
Yes. That is; the first rapture. There will be one in the Middle, and one at the end of the Great Tribulation.

" If so what happens to those who miss the rapture that were supposed to be christians."
They are finding that what they were told about Jesus was true. And they will end up suffering along with others especially when the persecutions begin. Those that are caught are beheaded, and those beheaded are rapured in the middle of the Great Tribulation. Those that are still alive at that point will be guided by God, and hopefully they will stay true, faithful to God.

Answer 2

Purpose: The Great Tribulation is the last time God is going give man the chance to believe in Him. We've had all of creation and chosen sin, which He cannot allow to continue. I believe that the Tribulation will be post-rapture, though many theologians don't. Some believe rapture before, some during, and some after. I believe Revelations shows 2 raptures, one before the Tribulation, and one 3.5 yrs after it starts, during the Tribulation. It is at this point that Satan is going to be given free reign over the earth. It will be for a period of 3.5 years, and God will do nothing to stop him doing anything he wants. What does God do to poeple who sin? He makes them run wild in their sin. How will Israel be affected? There are 144,000 Jews sealed to God (the remnant). There will, of course, be others who chose to believe, but God has chosen 12.000 from each of the 12 tribes to be His. Those who profess to be Christians at the time of the Rapture and are left behind will have 3.5 years to find out where they "missed the boat" and correct the error of their ways. I think it will be more shocking the people who are left behind than the one's who aren't. Need more info? Read Daniel and Revelation. Before doing so, and while doing so, pray for wisdom.

Answer 3

Read the Gospel of Luke where he describes Jesus' entry into Jerusalem.

Read Luke 19:41-44 It reads : "[41] As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it [42] and said, "If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace--but now it is hidden from your eyes. [43] The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. [44] They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God's coming to you.""

Now go and read the secular 1st Century historian, Josephus, and his description of the fall of Jerusalem and the Temple during the "War of the Jews" in 70 A.D.

Jesus' prophecy a week before His crucifixion and what Josephus wrote as a historian some 40 years after Christ's crucifixion, match perfectly down to the last grisly detail.

That was the "Great Tribulation".Interesting facts include, it was at Passover time so the whole Jewish people were within the city walls when the Roman army encircled it and put it under seige (as Jesus said would happen). The entire time of seige was about three and a half years from the setting in place of encircling troops until the walls were actually breached and troops entered the city. (Did you see the number 3 1/2?) During this period of being cut-off horrible and unspeakable things went on inside the city. Josephus documents whole families dying in their homes of starvation. He writes of one young mother killing, roasting, and eating her infant son.

Jesus continues his prophecy of the Great Tribulation over in Luke 21:20 -24
""[20] When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. [21] Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city. [22] For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written. [23] How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. [24] They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations..."

Pay attention to verse 23...how dreadful it will be for pregnant women and nursing mothers. Just what Josephus recorded about the cannibalism.

The "Great Tribulation" occurred in 70 A.D.

Answer 4

I believe that the Great Tribulation is going to be there to test our faith to the tenth degree.

I mean, think about it, you must know of the Mark of the Beast.
It says in Revelations that every woman, man and child who does not receive the Mark will not be able to buy or sell any thing.

How easy would it be if you were faced with the decision of buying a loaf of bread and taking the Mark of the Beast just to have that loaf of bread. By you taking the Mark you have already jumped Faith by not trusting in God that he would provide for you.

In that time of tribulation the Christian faith will be so persecuted and hated that the bible talks about people who will have to lay down the lives as not to receive the Mark of the beast.

I believe that the mark of the beast will come before the Rapture to test the Christians, before Jesus returns as an act of Miracle and even then the bible still talks about people who will Rebuke God.

Answer 5

You are asking a question that will have many different answers as they will be based on the interpretation each person puts on it. Here is my take..and why. The purpose...to weed out those that are not true believers. They will have to choose. It will affect only those that did not get taken up with Christ prior to its beginnings. I believe the rapture will occur prior to or in mid tribulation because the Bible states that believers (the saints) are not to know God's wrath. The last bowls are called bowls of wrath. Israel will not be harmed by earthly forces although she will experience the wrath of God. Those that miss the rapture will be tested and will either turn towards God or away from him. Just my take on things.

Answer 6

Wow. You know entire textbooks have been written to answer that question. While I feel I have a fair grasp of the end times due to some study, I will answer just one aspect of your question with another one. Think of it this way. If the church does not have to go through the great tribulation, how does Jesus get a pure and spotless bride in the end?

Answer 7

The tribulation coming is God coming back to judge the wicked of the earth, and most of them are the kings and leaders of the earth because they have raped and piliged Gods children,that is what is coming, Armegeddon is, he gathers them there and comes and judges them.
2nd.It will afected all and all means all on the earth, like God and moses affected egypt in the ten commandments.
3rd. Yes the church is going to go through it, Many will tell you we are going to be raptured before the antichrist gets here but that is not what the Bible teaches, it teaches we will be transformed or raptured at the 7th trump and that is at the end of the trib not the begginnig, why because Gods plan is a test and he will see who will take the mark of the beast. Now when the trib starts the antichrist will come on the scene first and he will have a short time to make peace and tell the world he is God, but he is really the devil as antichrist and he will cause you to take the mark or kill you, and thats the test.
So antichrist shows up and the world loves him because he caused peace in the middle east and then he claims to be God and at that time God will awaken the Jews who thought he was God at first but then the greatest revival will come as he awakens them, now the antichrist will have a short time to rein and he percicutes and kills most of Gods saints and then He comes back at the end with his mighty army and judges them at armegeddon and then we are all transformed, those who beleived Jesus before this takes place, and it is close.
read this, be prepared;
http://www.freedomcame.com/glory/

Answer 8

Dear An search,

For myself personally i am a pre-trib, pre-mil, so the great tribulation will be a time where God's judgement is poured upon the earth for sin (the Scriputres describe it as a time of Jacob's trouble- and the horribleness of it is described in Matthew 24.

I believe that the church will be raptured out prior to that time (see 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18).

Because Israel is God's chosen nation- i believe many Jews will come to Christ after the tribulation but they will suffer a difficult death.

The Bible teaches us that God has elected us so those who are supposed to know God- God will find a way to make Himself known to them. Imagine all the friends that made fun of you when you shared the gospel with them (imagine if all the Christians disappeared from your workplace one day). They might remember what you shared with them- that's why i believe that when the Bible tells us our work in the Lord is never in vain- there is truth to that! As Isaiah says- the pouring out of God's word will accomplish what God sent it forth for.

Hope that helps.

Kindly,

Nickster

Answer 9

To many questions for this old guy.
I hope the Church doesn't have to go through the tribulation. I don't think we will. Tribulation is a time of great sorrow, it is suppose to effect non believers.

Answer 10

It is called the time of Jacob's trouble. Jacob was a Jew, and the 7 year tribulation will be the time when God reckons with the Jewish nation for not accepting Christ as savior. It takes the events of the tribulation for the Jews to embrace Christ as savior. God said He would never forsake Israel, and He won't. He will in grace bring them to faith in Christ.