Chapter 3: The Day of the Lord: An Awesome Reality

In biblical prophecy, “The Day of the Lord” is an inevitability. This phrase appears throughout the Old Testament prophets and is vividly described in the New Testament, especially in the Book of Revelation.

For many in the Church today, the Day of the Lord might seem like a vague idea about future judgment, perhaps causing some unease or being dismissed as too complex or distant for immediate concern. However, a clear understanding of the Day of the Lord is not just for theologians. It is essential for every believer who wants to live holy, honor God, and be prepared for eternity.

This chapter, and this book, serves as a call to the Church to awaken. It urges us to look seriously at what Scripture says about this coming period. This will be a time of God’s direct judgment on sin and rebellion, and the time when His righteous kingdom will be established on earth.

DEFINING “THE DAY OF THE LORD”

The term “Day of the Lord” refers to a specific period when God will directly and decisively judge and punish those who have rejected His word and His Christ. He will judge wickedness, deliver His people, and show His supreme authority over all creation. The Old Testament prophets spoke often about this day, describing it as terrifying for the ungodly but hopeful for the righteous.

To ignore the Day of the Lord, is to remain spiritually unprepared in the coming judgments. It means misunderstanding the times we live in, and failing to grasp how these truths should affect our lives, our witness, and our relationship with God. The message is serious, but it also contains a loving warning, a call to repentance, and hope for those who are in Christ. As we begin this study, let us approach God’s Word with open hearts, reverence, and a prayer for the Holy Spirit to help us understand these important truths.

WHEN DOES THE DAY OF THE LORD BEGIN?

Acts 2:17-21

17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:

18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:

19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke:

20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:

21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

It is obvious that the Prophet is speaking of the day of Pentecost in which the Holy Ghost was poured out to establish the church. Now after the church is established there will be a preaching of the gospel throughout the world, compelling men to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. Those who call upon the name of the Lord during that time of the church shall be saved. However, for the sake of rightly dividing the word, it is necessary to point out that the verses previous to these, were given over to describing the desolations rendered in the day of the Lord. That is important if we are to understand the context of these verses. In the 19 th verse he goes back to the attributes of that great day. This means that He will shew these signs to the world and the church before He comes to execute His final vengeance. These events may not be considered as a sign of His final judgment to the world, but they are definitely signs to the church.

A DAY OF DARKNESS:

Joel 2:31

The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.

We are the people who know our God. We have read and studied His word. We are sure of His works, His plan and His purpose. Therefore, these signs will be a time of expectation for the church; those of us who look and long for His coming.

Revelation 6:12-14

12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;

13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.

14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.

Revelation 16:10

10 And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, Amos 5:18 & 20

18 Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light.

…

20 Shall not the day of the LORD be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?

THICK DARKNESS:

I want us to understand the meaning of thick darkness. And in keeping with the truth of the matter, some of the plagues released in the trumpet judgements have been released on earth before, i.e. water turned to blood and yes, thick darkness. We see in the plagues of Egypt, that thick darkness was brought against the land of Egypt.

Exodus 10:21

And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.

Not only was there darkness in Egypt, but it was darkness that one could physically feel. I would imagine it to be as if one was in a thick, black fog.

Exodus 10:22-23

22 And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days:

23 They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.

This is very interesting. The Egyptians never came out of their houses during the three days of darkness. However, the darkness was so thick that they could not see one another. Now generally speaking, it would be natural for these people to light torches or candles of some kind, to dispel the darkness. But that was not possible. The darkness was so thick that fire was quenched by it. Nevertheless, all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.

Again we must stay with the scriptures: the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light. This happens at the pouring out of the Fourth Vial. Thus the “Day of the Lord,” is a time of perpetual darkness. It is a time when neither the sun, nor the moon, will shine upon the earth.

However, we also know that the sun will cease to shine for four hours each day; and the moon and stars will not shine for four hours each night, as determined by the Fourth Trumpet Judgment. Though darkness is determined in both the Trumpet Judgments and the Vial Judgments, we must stay with the totality of the scriptures. We are experiencing wars, and everyday there are rumors of wars that might soon break out. There are famines in certain countries, and the number of earthquakes has escalated tremendously. The day we are living in right now is the beginning of sorrows. We know that the trumpet judgments are the sorrows. For in those days, the church is still here, the testimony of Jesus Christ is still being given, and the saints of God are still being tried. But the comforting fact for us is that we are not appointed to the wrath of God. Thus, if the day of the Lord is a day of wrath, then it would have to begin after the church is raptured.

Because we have so many passages that declare the Day of the Lord as a “day of wrath,” therefore, we have to make a distinction between the trumpet judgments, (which are the sorrows, forecasted by Jesus), and the vial judgments, which are specially deemed, ‘the wrath of God.” The conclusion is that the ‘day of the Lord’ will begin with the wrath or the outpouring of the vial judgments.

REFERENCE SCRIPTURES: A DAY OF WRATH AND VENGEANCE

Zephaniah 1:15-18

15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,

16 A day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers.

17 And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the LORD: and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung.

18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD’S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.

Isaiah 35:4

Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you.

Isaiah 34:8

For it is the day of the LORD’S vengeance, and the year of recompences for the controversy of Zion.

Obadiah 1:15-16

15 For the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head.

16 For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually, yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow down, and they shall be as though they had not been.

Joel 2:1-11

1 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand;

2 A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.

3 A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.

4 The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run.

5 Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array.

6 Before their face the people shall be much pained: all faces shall gather blackness.

7 They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks:

8 Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded.

9 They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief.

10 The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:

11 And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?

OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECY:THE DAY OF THE LORD

OBADIAH’S DETAILED ACCOUNT OF JUDGMENT: A WARNING TO NATIONS

The prophecy of Obadiah, though short, gives a detailed example of the principles behind the Day of the Lord, especially concerning the judgment of nations. While it specifically addresses Edom (the descendants of Esau), its message contains timeless warnings for all nations (“all the heathen,” Obadiah 1:15). These warnings concern their behavior, particularly towards God’s covenant people, Israel, and their own prideful rebellion against God.

Obadiah reveals several key reasons for God’s strong judgment on Edom, which show us how divine justice works:

1. Pride and Self-Exaltation: Edom’s arrogance was a main reason for its downfall.“The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down to the ground? Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the LORD.” (Obadiah 1:3-4)

• This describes a common human and national tendency to rely on oneself and defy God. This is a pride that God consistently opposes (Isaiah 2:12). Nations today that lift themselves up, trusting in their own power, wisdom, or wealth while ignoring God, face a similar warning.

2. Violence and Malice Towards God’s People (Israel/Judah): Edom’s sin was made much worse by its actions against its related nation, Jacob (Israel), when Israel was vulnerable and in distress.

“For thy violence against thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever.” (Obadiah 1:10)

• The prophet carefully lists Edom’s wrongdoings: “In the day that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou wast as one of them.” (Obadiah 1:11) They did not just observe; they actively joined in or rejoiced at Judah’s suffering: “But thou shouldest not have looked on the day of thy brother in the day that he became a stranger; neither shouldest thou have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; neither shouldest thou have spoken proudly in the day of distress.” (Obadiah 1:12)
• This is a serious warning. God notices how nations treat Israel and, by extension, how the world treats His Church. The persecution of believers and opposition to God’s redemptive plans will be addressed in the Day of the Lord.

3. Confederacies and Betrayal: Edom’s alliances proved to be untrustworthy, a common outcome when human alliances oppose God’s will.

• “All the men of thy confederacy have brought thee even to the border: the men that were at peace with thee have deceived thee, and prevailed against thee; they that eat thy bread have laid a wound under thee: there is none understanding in him.” (Obadiah 1:7)
• This shows that worldly alliances formed to rebel against God, or to harm His people will ultimately fail and lead to their own ruin. God will dismantle the conspiracies of men.

4. The Principle of Reciprocal Justice:

Obadiah clearly states that Edom’s punishment would match its crimes. However, this principle is not just for Edom, it is for all who disobey or rebel against God. “For the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head.” (Obadiah 1:15)

• This principle of repayment is essential to God’s justice. The world, which has largely rejected Jesus Christ and often persecuted His followers, will face a judgment where its actions are repaid. The “heathen” (Gentile nations) who have caused God’s people to “drink” their judgments upon God’s holy mountain (defiling it in their temporary victory) will themselves “drink continually...and they shall be as though they had not been” (Obadiah 1:16), meaning complete destruction.

Obadiah’s prophecy, therefore, is more than an ancient message against a nation that no longer exists. It is an example of the divine judgment that will occur in the Day of the Lord for all nations that oppose God, His people, and His anointed King, Jesus Christ. It highlights how seriously God views pride, the mistreatment of His chosen people, and the rejection of His authority. The world may think it is not ready for such a judgment, or even that such a day will not happen, but Obadiah, along with other prophets, confirms its absolute certainty and its detailed and just execution.

• They took further advantage of Judah’s disaster: “Thou shouldest not have entered into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; yea, thou shouldest not have looked on their affliction in the day of their calamity, nor have laid hands on their substance in the day of their calamity; Neither shouldest thou have stood in the crossway, to cut off those of his that did escape; neither shouldest thou have delivered up those of his that did remain in the day of distress.” (Obadiah 1:13-14)

THE SEVEN TRUMPETS: A DETAILED LOOK