Day of the Lord

Blessings to all of you are actively watching and praying!

In order to do justice to this study one should take a look at every instance of the phrase in the Bible.

Isaiah 2:12; 13:6, 9; Jeremiah 46:10; Ezekiel 13:5, 30:3; Joel 1:15, 2:1, 11, 31; Amos 5:18, 20; Obadiah 15, Zephaniah 1:7, 14; Zechariah 14:1; and Malachi 4:5

Then there are another XXX number of verses that mention “that day”. I am still in the middle of it but what I have found to this point is enough to report the following:

The “Day of the Lord” is not one specific day but a “day” that spans over 1000 years!

Here is one passage that spans the whole time frame:

2 Peter 3 (Amplified)

Chapter heading - The Day of the Lord

8 Nevertheless, do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like one day. 9 The Lord does not delay [as though He were unable to act] and is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is [extraordinarily] patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

A New Heaven and Earth

10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will vanish with a [mighty and thunderous] roar, and the [material] elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and the works that are on it will be burned up.

So what is 2 Peter 3:8-10 saying?

First off, Peter tells us that one day is like a thousand years. Convenient that Peter gives us this day like 1000 years just before these verses!

Now notice how Peter portrays the “Day of the Lord” as one very long day:

And here I believe we see the two end points:

- But the day of the Lord will come like a thief

----- And then ----- a separation

- the heavens will vanish with a [mighty and thunderous] roar, and the [material] elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and the works that are on it will be burned up.

So it comes (starts) like a thief in the night – where have we seen that before?

1 Thessalonians 5 (NIV)

The Day of the Lord

1 Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

And here we see the other end point of the timeline:

Revelation 20 (NIV)

The Judgment of the Dead

11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.

In just a couple verses later we see:

Revelation 21 (NIV)

A New Heaven and a New Earth

1 Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

So this is the quick and dirty! But there is more to this, a lot more!

We know that Christ had the role of prophet in the Old Testament. When he died and went to heaven, he was seated at the right hand of the God the Father and his role changed. He took on a new roll of Great High Priest!

Hebrews 4 (Amplified)

14 Inasmuch then as we [believers] have a great High Priest who has [already ascended and] passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession [of faith and cling tenaciously to our absolute trust in Him as Savior].

and

Hebrews 8 (Amplified)

A Better Ministry

1 Now the main point of what we have to say is this: we have such a High Priest, [the Christ] who is seated [in the place of honor] at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty (God) in heaven, 2 a Minister (Officiating Priest) in the holy places and in the true tabernacle, which is erected not by man, but by the Lord.

So what does he do in his function of Great High Priest? What is he currently doing?

Romans 8:34 (NIV)

34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.

and

1 John 2 (NIV)

1 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

He intercedes for us and he is our advocate or attorney! And why does he have to defend us?

Revelation 12:10 (NIV)

10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:

“Now have come the salvation and the power

and the kingdom of our God,

and the authority of his Messiah.

For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,

who accuses them before our God day and night,

has been hurled down.

Satan has direct access to the throne of God and has had it since at least Job because we see how he discussed Job with God.

So when does Christ’s role change? At what point is he no longer Great High Priest?

Hebrews 10 (Amplified)

11 Every priest stands [at his altar of service] ministering daily, offering the same sacrifices over and over, which are never able to strip away sins [that envelop and cover us]; 12 whereas Christ, having offered the one sacrifice [the all-sufficient sacrifice of Himself] for sins for all time, sat down [signifying the completion of atonement for sin] at the right hand of God [the position of honor], 13 waiting from that time onward until his enemies are made a footstool for His feet.

and

Psalm 110 Amplified Bible (AMP)

The Lord Gives Dominion to the King.

A Psalm of David.

1 The Lord (Father) says to my Lord (the Messiah, His Son),

“Sit at My right hand

Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet [subjugating them into complete submission].”

So what is God or Christ’s footstool?

Isaiah 66 (NIV)

Judgment and Hope

1 This is what the Lord says:

“Heaven is my throne,

and the earth is my footstool.

Where is the house you will build for me?

Where will my resting place be?

and

Matthew 5 (NIV)

Oaths

33 “Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.’ 34 But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King.

So till when? When God makes his enemies his footstool!

Here is a Hypothesis:

Satan is Christ’s enemy. To confine Satan to the earth would literally place Satan or Christ’s enemy under his feet. We know that Satan has full access to heaven right now and has had it for a long long time.

So written a different way, if Satan is tossed from heaven and is confined to earth one could literally say that Christ’s enemies were made to be his footstool.

As a result we should then see that Christ would transition from his role of Great High Priest to his new role Lord of Lords and King of Kings!

I wonder if the Bible says anything about this event? Can we prove the hypothesis or not?

Revelation 12 (Amplified)

7 And war broke out in heaven, Michael [the archangel] and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought, 8 but they were not strong enough and did not prevail, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, the age-old serpent who is called the devil and Satan, he who continually deceives and seduces the entire inhabited world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying,

“Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom (dominion, reign) of our God, and the authority of His Christ have come; for the accuser of our [believing] brothers and sisters has been thrown down [at last], he who accuses them and keeps bringing charges [of sinful behavior] against them before our God day and night.

So here we have it! As soon as Satan is tossed from heaven and confined to earth, the kingdom (dominion and reign) of our God, and the authority of His Christ have come and Christ is handed the Kingdom!

It is the start of the physical Kingdom of God and it take place in heaven – exactly where we are headed! This is the coronation of Christ as King of Kings and Lord of Lords! The transition takes place right after Satan is tossed from heaven and is confined to the earth, God’s footstool!

Now if you think about it, if the Kingdom is God is setup in heaven why would God want Satan anywhere near it? We (the Church) will be the first to enter the physical Kingdom of God after the rapture and our stop off at the Judgment Seat of Christ! Also because the Church is in heaven, Satan will no longer need to accuse anyone before God anymore!

Now, does this role of King of Kings and Lord of Lords ever end? Will his role change again? Answer is yes!

1 Corinthians 15 (Amplified)

20 But now [as things really are] Christ has in fact been raised from the dead, [and He became] the first fruits [that is, the first to be resurrected with an incorruptible, immortal body, foreshadowing the resurrection] of those who have fallen asleep [in death]. 21 For since [it was] by a man that death came [into the world], it is also by a Man that the resurrection of the dead has come. 22 For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then those who are Christ’s [own will be resurrected with incorruptible, immortal bodies] at His coming.

And here we go.

24 After that comes the end (completion), when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father, after He has made inoperative and abolished every ruler and every authority and power. 25 For Christ must reign [as King] until He has put all His enemies under His feet. 26 The last enemy to be abolished and put to an end is death.

So, when at the end of the Millennium, after all of his enemies have finally been eliminated, he hands the Kingdom back to God after ruling it personally for 1000 years!

So I argue that the Day of the Lord is actually Christ’s Day, when he takes center stage! I believe that this is the reward that he receives from the Father for being obedient by dying on the cross! So the day technically starts at the moment that he is crowned King of Kings and Lord of Lords and runs through the time that ALL of his enemies are destroyed!

So who are Christ’s enemies?

The Anti-Christ, the False Prophet, Satan, Hades, and Death!

It says above in 1 Corinthians 15 that the last one to be conquered is Death!

So when are the others destroyed (I think that is the right word) ?

First two to enter the lake of fire are the Anti-Christ and the False Prophet. Up to this point, the Lake of Fire is empty. Notice that this happens before the Millennium.

Revelation 19

19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 21 The rest were killed with the sword coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.

Then at the end of the Millennium Satan is throw in the lake of fire:

Revelation 20 (Amplified)

10 And the devil who had deceived them was hurled into the lake of fire and burning brimstone (sulfur), where the beast (Antichrist) and false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night, forever and ever.

So we see here the third person being thrown into the Lake of Fire – Satan, even before the final White Throne Judgment!

The Final Judgment

11 And I saw a great white throne and Him who was seated upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them [for this heaven and earth are passing away]. 12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the Book of Life; and the dead were judged according to what they had done as written in the books [that is, everything done while on earth]. 13 And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, and death and Hades (the realm of the dead) surrendered the dead who were in them; and they were judged and sentenced, every one according to their deeds. 14 Then death and Hades [the realm of the dead] were thrown into the lake of fire.

So what we see here is that Hades (holds the dead that DO NOT have entries in the book of life) being emptied out. People have been added there since Cain! Then Hades is thrown into the Lake of Fire. Then Death, we saw that in 1 Corinthians 15, Death was last.

So now that Death doesn’t exist anymore, all that are judged (after a trial BTW, their own actions condemn them!) are thrown in to the Lake of Fire and we enter into the New Jerusalem!

So since death isn’t destroyed until after the Millennium, will there be death in the Millennium?

So we see here clearly, that at the end of the Millennium, when ALL of Christ’s enemies are totally destroy, Christ gives back the Kingdom to the Father!

So you see that the Day of the Lord is truly “Christ’s Day” and it lasts just over 1000 years!

Now here is another interesting verse I ran across. I have been scouring the scriptures for more clues about when Christ’s coronation will take place. Lots of passages talk about “before the Day of the Lord”. There are other passages that talk about this coordination! But take a look at this:

Luke 17 (Amplified)

20 Now having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He replied, “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed or with a visible display;

I would have thought that this would somehow be celebrated in a huge way and that we might, knowing what to look for, get a glimpse of that glorious day!

Hope you are as blessed as I was in putting this together!

Peter

Vienna Austria