Day Of The Lord
Bridgeway Bible Dictionary [1]
Israelites of Old Testament times looked for the day when God would intervene in the affairs of the world, righting the wrongs and establishing his just rule on the earth. They called this divine intervention the day of the Lord ( Isaiah 2:12-19; Isaiah 13:6; Isaiah 13:9; Zephaniah 1:14-16; Zechariah 14:9).
Earlier ‘days of the Lord’
Although the day of the Lord was usually considered to be something terrifying, Israelites often looked forward to it. The reason for this was that they believed that God would punish Israel’s enemies and bring in Israel’s golden age ( Jeremiah 46:10; Zephaniah 3:16-20). They failed to realize, however, that in that day God would punish all sinners, Israelites included, and save all the faithful, regardless of national or social status ( Joel 2:30-32; Amos 5:18; Malachi 3:1-4; Malachi 4:1-3).
Any catastrophic judgment, such as a flood, earthquake, locust plague, famine or war, could be called a day of the Lord ( Joel 1:15-16; Joel 2:1-2; Joel 2:11). But such a catastrophe was only a forerunner (and at the same time a guarantee) of the great and final day of the Lord ( Joel 2:30-32; Joel 3:14-18).
Jesus Christ’s first coming was, in a sense, a day of the Lord, for through Christ God intervened in the affairs of the world to conquer Satan, deal with sin and proclaim his kingdom ( Matthew 3:11-12; Matthew 4:14-17; Acts 2:16-21; see Kingdom Of God ). The ‘last days’ had begun ( Acts 2:17; 1 Corinthians 10:11; 2 Timothy 3:1; Hebrews 1:2; 1 Peter 1:20; 1 John 2:18). They will reach their climax when Christ returns at the end of the age to purge the world of sin and bring his kingdom to its victorious completion ( Isaiah 2:2-4; Matthew 24:29-31; Matthew 25:31-32; 2 Peter 3:3-4; 2 Peter 3:10).
The final great ‘day of the Lord’
Christ’s people have always suffered persecution, but before the final great day of the Lord that persecution will become more severe ( Matthew 24:5-14; John 16:33; 2 Thessalonians 1:5-12; see Persecution ). The spirit of antichrist, which has always been in the world, will express itself in a final great rebellion against God. There will be all sorts of pressures, both subtle and open, to force Christians to abandon their faith in Christ ( Matthew 24:15-24; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-7; 1 John 2:18; see Antichrist ).
In a series of devastating judgments, God will pour out his wrath upon a rebellious world ( 2 Thessalonians 1:8; Revelation 6:17; Revelation 14:9-11; Revelation 16:2). God will not pour out his wrath upon his own people; on the contrary he will protect them from it ( Revelation 7:1-3; Revelation 9:4; cf. Romans 5:9; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians 5:9). But the rebels, instead of turning to God in repentance, will hate him and persecute his people even more ( Revelation 9:18; Revelation 9:20-21; Revelation 11:7-10; Revelation 12:17; Revelation 16:9; Revelation 16:21). The persecution will be so bitter that, for the sake of his people, God will shorten the day of his wrath. Although some believers will be killed for their faith in Christ, as far as God is concerned not one will be lost ( Revelation 6:9-11; Revelation 12:11-12; Revelation 20:4; cf. Matthew 24:22; Luke 21:16-18).
Christ’s return will be a day of judgment that will result in a separation between the wicked and the righteous. For one it will be a day of wrath, for the other a day of salvation ( Matthew 24:36-41; Matthew 25:32; Matthew 25:46; Luke 21:27-28; Acts 24:15; Romans 2:5; Philippians 1:6; Philippians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18; 2 Thessalonians 1:5-8; Revelation 22:12-15; see Judgment ; Resurrection ).
In every era the circumstances of Christians vary from nation to nation. Christians in any place at any time could belong to the last generation of humanity as we know it. Therefore, the Bible urges Christians of all nations and eras to be alert and ready at all times for the onset of the final day of the Lord and the return of Christ ( Matthew 24:42-44; Mark 13:32-37; 1 Thessalonians 5:2-6; 2 Peter 3:10-12).
However, no one knows when the end of the age will come, and Christians should not behave foolishly by thinking the world is about to come to an end ( Matthew 24:36; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-2; 2 Thessalonians 3:11-12). They must carry on with life normally, making long-term plans where necessary, yet remembering that God may intervene at any time ( Luke 19:11-27; Acts 1:6-8; 1 Corinthians 15:5-7; Philippians 1:9-10; 1 Thessalonians 5:6; 1 Thessalonians 5:11; 1 Thessalonians 5:14).
Holman Bible Dictionary [2]
yom Genesis 1:14 Genesis 3:8 Genesis 8:22 Amos 5:8 24 Genesis 1:5 Numbers 7:12 7:18 Haggai 1:15 Genesis 2:4 Psalm 102:3 Isaiah 7:17 Isaiah 9:3 Jeremiah 32:31 Ezekiel 1:28 Zechariah 14:7
“Day of the Lord” does not in itself designate the time perspective of the event, whether it is past, present, or future. Lamentations 2:2 can speak of the “day of the Lord's anger” in past tense, describing the fall of Jerusalem. Joel 1:15 could describe a present disaster as the “day of the Lord.”
The Old Testament prophets used a term familiar to their audience, a term by which the audience expected light and salvation ( Amos 5:18 ), but the prophets painted it as a day of darkness and judgment ( Isaiah 2:10-22; Isaiah 13:6 ,Isaiah 13:6, 13:9; Joel 1:15; Joel 2:1-11 ,Joel 2:1-11, 2:31; Joel 3:14-15; Amos 5:20; Zephaniah 1:7-8 ,Zephaniah 1:7-8, 1:14-18; Malachi 4:5 ). The Old Testament language of the day of the Lord is thus aimed at warning sinners among God's people of the danger of trust in traditional religion without commitment to God and to His way of life. It is language that could be aimed at judging Israel or that could be used to promise deliverance from evil enemies ( Isaiah 13:6 ,Isaiah 13:6, 13:9; Ezekiel 30:3; Obadiah 1:15 ). The day of the Lord is thus a point in time in which God displays His sovereign initiative to reveal His control of history, of time, of His people, and of all people.
New Testament writers took up the Old Testament expression to point to Christ's final victory and the final judgment of sinners. In so doing, they used several different expressions: “day of Jesus Christ” ( Philippians 1:6 ,Philippians 1:6, 1:10 ), “day of our Lord Jesus” ( 1 Corinthians 1:8; 1 Corinthians 5:5 ); “day of the Lord” ( 1 Thessalonians 5:2 ); “day of Christ” ( Philippians 2:16 ); “day of judgment” ( 1 John 4:17 ); “the day” ( 1 Thessalonians 5:4 ); “that day” ( 2 Timothy 1:12 ); “day of wrath” ( Romans 2:5 ).
People who take a dispensational perspective on Scripture often seek to interpret each of the terms differently, so that the “day of Christ” is a day of blessing equated with the rapture, whereas the day of God is an inclusive term for all the events of end time ( 2 Peter 3:12 ). See Dispensations. In this view the day of the Lord includes the great tribulation, the following judgment on the nations, and the time of worldwide blessing under the rule of the Messiah.
Many Bible students who do not take a dispensational viewpoint interpret the several expressions in the New Testament to refer to one major event: the end time when Christ returns for the final judgment and establishes His eternal kingdom.
Whichever interpretation one makes of specific details, the day of the Lord points to the promise that God's eternal sovereignty over all creation and all nations will one day become crystal clear to all creatures.
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible [3]
DAY OF THE LORD . The day in which Jehovah was expected to punish sinful Hebrews and the enemies of Israel, and to establish at least the righteous remnant of His people in political supremacy. The Hebrews believed implicitly that their God Jehovah was certain to defeat all rivals. Before Amos this view had not reached a definite eschatology, and probably involved only a general expectation of the triumph of Israel and Israel’s God. With Amos, however, the conception of punishment became less ethnic and more moral. The sins of Israel itself deserved punishment, and Amos declared that the luxury of the nation, with all its economic oppression, had grown hateful to Jehovah, and unless abandoned would bring fearful punishment ( Amos 2:6-8; Amos 3:9-15; Amos 5:10-13; Amos 6:4-8 ). The righteousness of Jehovah demanded that the sins of His people as well as those of the heathen should be punished. After Amos the thought of an awful day of Divine punishment was extended from Israel to a world of sinners. According to Zephaniah ( Amos 1:2-15 , Amos 2:4-15 ), punishment was now to come upon all wicked persons, both Jews and Gentiles, because of wrong. So, too, the unknown prophet who wrote under the name of Malachi. Ezekiel ( Ezekiel 30:2 f., Ezekiel 34:12 , Ezekiel 39:8 f.), however, reverted to the same national thought of a ‘day of battle,’ in which Jehovah would conquer all Israel’s foes; and to some extent this same national idea is represented by Joel ( Joel 2:18-27 ). With the later prophets there is to be seen an element of reconstruction as well as punishment in Jehovah’s action. Sinners, whether Jews or Gentiles, are to be punished, but a pious remnant is to be saved, the beginnings of a new Israel.
It is clear that this conception of a great Day of Jehovah underlies much of the Messianic expectation of apocryphal literature. The establishment of a remnant of a pious Israel was the germ of the hope of the Messianic kingdom; and the Day of Jehovah itself became the Day of Judgment , which figures so largely in both Jewish and Christian Messianism. It fact, it is not too much to say that the eschatology of Judaism is really a development of the implications of the prophetic teaching as to the Day of Jehovah.
Shailer Mathews.
Morrish Bible Dictionary [4]
This cannot be separated from Messiah's day. It is often characterised by judgement: "A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness . . . . the day of the Lord is great and very terrible." Joel 2:2,11,31; Malachi 4:1 . "The day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night; for when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them." 1 Thessalonians 5:2,3 . "The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up." 2 Peter 3:10 . This scene is followed by 'THE DAY OF GOD' in 2 Peter 3:12 , which ushers in the new heavens and the new earth.
It is important to keep the 'day' quite distinct from the coming of the Lord to fetch His saints; for many have misapplied the term, and it has been constantly asserted that the Second Epistle to the Thessalonians was written to show the saints that it was wrong to be expecting the return of the Lord; whereas the fact is they thought the day of the Lord had come (though the First Epistle keeps the two things quite distinct: compare 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 with 1 Thessalonians 5:1-4 ), and this could not come until Antichrist was revealed. There will be judgements before the millennium, and there will be judgements after the millennium, so that we may regard the Day of the Lord as extending through the millennium: it will be 'the Lord's' day in contrast to 'man's' day.
Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament [5]
See Eschatology.
