Part I
“This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you… Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, ‘Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as [they were] from the beginning of the creation’. ” {2nd Peter 3:1,3}
When people mock and say “All those people of old thought Jesus was returning in their day but here we are! In 2025! And He still has not come.” Do not let yourself think for a moment, “Well, they have a point.” Nay, do not do that. God has always presented time to His people as being short and His coming near. He foresaw that men would mock at His promise and thereby discourage many from talking about it or even looking forward to it. As a result many would become ignorant about it and the events connected with it so that they would become susceptible to the deceptions of the enemy of man about it.
It is the purpose of these series of studies to refresh in the minds of believers the promise of His coming and, especially, the events connected with it.
The Second Coming of Jesus has been and is the central hope of all true believers; in the which all the saints shall behold Him whom they love and shall be taken to be with Him forevermore.
Therefore, let us revisit this theme together.
…
While still physically present with His disciples we are informed:
“Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father…”
Reading further on we see Him telling Peter..
“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if [it were] not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, [there] ye may be also.“ {John 13:1, 14:1-3}
Later on in the narrative we read:
“And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” {Acts 1:9-11}
John the beloved speaking of His return declared:
“Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.” {Rev 1:7}
Which is in harmony with what Jesus himself, while looking forward into the future, had declared unto His disciples:
“And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” {Luke 21:25-27}
“And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.” {Mark 13:25-27}
“And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” {Matt 24:29-31}
The apostle Paul corroborated their testimony when he declared:
“… the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels…” {2nd Thess 1:7-9}
Now let’s pull all these testimonies together…
From the above verses it can be seen that the personal and literal coming of Jesus in power and glory is clearly spoken about. It is not a spiritual coming which no man sees, neither is it a coming that is only seen by a few people in a certain part of the world but the same Jesus that ascended up in front of the disciples, He it is that shall come back. The manner in which He was taken up out of their sight by the agency of a cloud, so, in the same manner will He return and every eye shall see Him, all the tribes of the earth shall wail on account of Him.
Every other supposed coming that does not fit the description above and other biblical ones are counterfeits only designed to deceive. Be ware of them.
Part II: The Resurrection
As we delve deeper into the passages talking about the coming of Christ let us hold this question in the back of our minds, “What are the events connected with the return of Jesus Christ?”
Paul, while comforting the Thessalonians about their dead ones, whom he calls “them which are asleep”, declared:
“For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive [and] remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive [and] remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” {1st Thess 4:16-19}
There are some who will live and see Christ coming the second time.
At His second coming there shall be a resurrection of the dead in Christ. Note it say the dead in Christ. Not every dead person.
Together, both the resurrected and those who remained alive until that time will ascend to the clouds.
They meet the Lord in the air.
From that point onwards they will ever be with Him. Nevermore to be seperated from Him like they have been these past 200 years
Reiterating this teaching Paul says to the Corinthians:
“For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. … Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” {1st Cor 15:23,51,52}
Jesus Christ is the first fruits of the resurrected ones. He was crucified and died and was resurrected on the third day.
Those also who believe in Him though they die will be resurrected at His coming.
Compare the passage in 1st Thessalonians 4:16-19 and 1st Corinthians 15:23,51,52.
Both have an account of people who are alive at the second coming.
Both have an account of the sounding of a trumpet at the time of the second coming.
The passage in Thessalonians has the ascent of the living saints and the resurrected to the clouds to meet the Lord in the air while the one in Corinthians lacks it.
Similarly, the one in Corinthians has a mention of the saints being changed; from corruptible to incorruptible, from mortal to immortal. See 1st Cor 15:53-54. While the one in Thessalonians lacks it.
Thus, in summary, putting these two accounts together, at the second coming of Christ immortality shall be conferred to all the believers in Christ. Those that have died in Him shall be resurrected having immortal bodies and those alive shall be changed to have immortal bodies in the twinkling of an eye(1st Cor passage) and together they shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall they ever be with the Lord (1st Thess passage).
Ponder about this for a moment.
Immortality is received at the Second Coming.
The corrupt nature is taken away at the second coming.
There is a resurrection of everyone who has believed in Christ. Imagine that! All the believers from the past ages shall be resurrected. And from all the parts of the world. How great is that multitude! Imagine someone who died in the year 1034AD all over sudden arises and comes out of his dusty grave. Imagine their thoughts. Imagine them looking up and seeing Christ and realising that this is the fulfilment of their hope. How enraptured shall they be! Shall they not say:
“Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him and He will save us; this is the LORD; we have waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation” {Isa 25:9}
The Second coming of Jesus Christ and the resurrection has been the hope for all the believers throughout the ages past. Job the righteous, amidst his sufferings, declared:
“For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: After I shall awake, though this body be destroyed, yet in my flesh shall I see God: whom I shall see for myself and mine eyes shall behold not a stranger; my reins within me are consumed with earnest desire for that day …” {Job 19:25-27} (See marginal reading)
Martha also, while conversing with Jesus about dead Lazarus said,
“I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day” {John 11:24}
Jesus while teaching the people declared:
“And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day” {John 6:39}
“And this is the will of him that hath sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.” {John 6:40}
“Whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day” {John 6:54}
“At the last day” as spoken of by Christ or at “the latter day” as spoken of by Job or “at His coming” as spoken of by Paul are all reference to the same time when the believers in Christ shall be resurrected.
Alongside the event connected with the Second coming of Jesus it is also very important we note the different names used to denote the second coming itself. This is crucial in unlocking the most intensely interesting themes associated with the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.
Part III: A.K.A The Day of the LORD
“This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you… Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, ‘Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as [they were] from the beginning of the creation’. ” {2nd Peter 3:1,3}
“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But 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. Seeing then [that] all these things shall be dissolved, what manner [of persons] ought ye to be in [all] holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?” {2nd Peter 3:9-12}
In the passage above we see the apostle Peter while taking about the “second Coming of Jesus Christ” almost imperceptibly transition and start speaking of it as “the Day of the Lord” or “the day of God“. This is another title under which the Second Coming is often discussed in the Bible.
Observe Paul…
“For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive [and] remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God…”
Then Paul goes on to declare the following about that time:
“But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that 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, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day…” {1Thess 4:16-5:3}
Paul does the same thing as Peter: While taking about the second Coming of Jesus Christ almost imperceptibly transition and start speaking of it as the Day of the Lord.
The events surrounding the Second Coming were often understood to be contained in the prophecies under the title of the day of the LORD.
Take good note of this for we will delve deeper into it.
For now, let us pick some more events connected with the second coming of Christ from the above passages…
- It shall overtake the children of darkness as a thief. It shall come suddenly upon them. This is clearly seen because when they shall be saying, “peace and safety” sudden destruction comes upon them. See 1Thess 4:16-5:3. Question: why would the children of darkness around the time of the coming of Christ be crying, “peace and safety”?
- There will be destruction, sudden destruction, upon the wicked on that day. See 1Thess 4:16-5:3
- The children of God will NOT be overtaken by the day of the Lord as a thief because they are not in darkness regarding the times and the seasons. See 1Thess 4:16-5:3.
- The heavens shall pass away with great noise. See 2nd Pet 3:10
- There shall be a fire. A great fire that shall dissolve the heavens and make the elements melt. See 1st Pet 3:10
Before going about to discuss these points let us add one more passage from Paul where he again references the second coming of Jesus:
“… the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power…” {2nd Thess 1:7-9}
- Like Peter, Paul also talks of a flaming fire. See 2nd Thess 1:7-9
- It will be the day of taking vengeance upon them that know not God, nor obey the gospel. That means they shall be destroyed with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord. 1Thess 4:16-5:3 also referenced the destruction of the wicked as “sudden destruction”.
From these passages, the truth of the destruction of the wicked at the Second Coming is quite forcible. Those that know not God nor obey the gospel are destroyed.
Part IV: Destruction of the Wicked
Let us delve deeper into the destruction of the wicked and pull in more passages to get a fuller picture from the Scriptures.
Paul expresses it as such,
“Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power”, {2nd Thess 1:7-9}
“For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape” {1Thess 5:3}
Jesus, while talking of the day of His coming, said,
“But as the days of Noe [were,] so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.“ {Matt 24:36-39}
Notice the words: “took them all away” means destroyed or killed by the flood.
In the story of Noah the wicked outside ark were the ones destroyed of the flood. The righteous were not taken away by the flood but remained alive in the ark.
Here is Luke’s account of the same words of Jesus,
“And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all.” {Luke 17:26-27}
Comparing the passage of Luke to that of Matthew we see that the ones who are “taken away” are the ones who are “destroyed“.
What about in the passage below? (This passage is a little lower below the passage quoted from Luke above)
“I tell you, in that night there shall be two [men] in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. Two [women] shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two [men] shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.” {Luke 17:34-36}
Are the ones who are “taken” the righteous or the wicked?
Contextually and based on the figure used as basis and reference for these words it is the wicked. But let us let the Bible confirm that for us
The disciples, not understanding the ‘taken’ away statement asked, “Where Lord?” {Luke 17:37} or “Where are they taken Lord?” And the answer came,
“Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.“ {Luke 17:37}
That is to say: “Wheresoever the body of the ones taken away will be there will the eagles be gathered.”
Here, Jesus links in a new symbol that is associated with the destruction of the wicked, namely, the gathering of the eagles.
This same symbol is also contained in Revelation 19:11-21. Let summarily consider it…
“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him [was] called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war… And the armies [which were] in heaven followed him upon white horses… And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on [his] vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. ” {Rev 19:11-17}
Jesus Christ, who is the man on the horse, rides forth with the armies of heaven behind Him. He is coming to judge and make war: to tread the winepress of the wrath of God. Compare this to Paul’s prior statement
“… the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” {2nd Thess 1:7-9}
Isn’t there some good agreement there?
Notice the continuation of the passage in Revelation…
“And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, ‘Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all [men, both] free and bond, both small and great.’
“And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.”
And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which [sword] proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.” {Rev 19:17-21}
Immediately after the presentation of Christ coming to judge and make war is the invitation of the fowls to the supper of the great God. Why? Because all the wicked are about to be “destroyed”…
“… the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power…” {2nd Thess 1:7-9}
The fowls are called in response to the destruction of the wicked that takes place at the time. This is the teaching Jesus brought out in the Luke 17:37 concerning the ones taken away.
“Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.”
This teaching is also contained in Ezekiel 39 but we will not go there just yet.
Let us review…
“For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape”
“But as the days of Noe [were,] so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.“ {Matt 24:36-39}
“I tell you, in that night there shall be two [men] in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. Two [women] shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two [men] shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.” {Luke 17:34-36}
“And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.” {Luke 17:37}
In the coming of the Son of man all the wicked are taken away or destroyed while the righteous are left or “left behind”.
Part V: The Two gatherings at the End
“Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, ‘Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?’ He said unto them, ‘An enemy hath done this.’ The servants said unto him, ‘Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?’ But he said, ‘Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.’” {Matt 13:24-30}
In the harvest the tares are “first” gathered together in bundles to burn. Then afterwards the wheat are gathered into His barn.
Let us hear the interpretation of it…
“He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked [one; ]The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.” {Matt 13:37-40}
“The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. THEN shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. {Matt 13:41-43}
The reapers are the angels.
At the end of this world they shall be sent forth to gather first the tares in bundles then the wheat
The tares are gathered to be burned in the fire.
Afterwards, the righteous, the wheat, are gathered by the angels
” … they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. ” {Matt 24:30-31}
The first gathering is of the tares, in bundles, in preparation for burning in the furnace of fire.
The second gathering, in bundles, is of the wheat – His elect from the four winds of heaven.
“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together unto Him…” {2Thess 2:1}
Part VI: Summary
In summary, let’s state in a high level manner some things picked up from this article:
- There is a literal and personal Second coming of Christ. See Part I
- At the second coming, all the dead in Christ (the righteous dead) shall be resurrected and together with the righteous living they will have their natures changed, immortality conferred upon them, and be caught up together to meet Christ in the air and so will they ever be with the LORD. See Part II. Please note that this point goes well with the gathering of the righteous to Christ at the second coming as presented in the two gathering section.
- At the second coming, or the end of this world, there is a gathering of the tares, the wicked, into bundles, in readiness to burn them (Matt 13:30) or as interpreted, “All the things that offend are taken out of the kingdom and cast into the furnace of fire” (Matt 13:41-43), or in the words of Paul, “The wicked shall be destroyed with an everlasting destruction from the presence of the LORD” (2nd Thess 1:7-9) or yet again “sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.” (1Thess 5:3). Or in the words of Jesus, “Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.“
Before we wrap this up let us get into some details a little bit.
In the figure of the parable of the wheat and the tares, the tares are burnt in a furnace of fire. Also again according to 2nd Thess 1:7-9 it said Christ is coming in flaming fire to take vengeance. Yet again Peter in 2nd Peter 3:9-12 says the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the world and all the works burned up still indicative of some ‘fire action’.
In the figure that Jesus uses concerning the eagles gathering around the corpses of dead men, there is also seen some ‘fire action’. The beast and the false prophet suffer being thrown into this fire. Just like the tares which were thrown into the furnace of fire. In this account the fire is called the lake of fire and brimstone.
In addition it should be noted that these wicked entities that fight against Christ, namely, the beast, the kings of the earth and their armies with the false prophet also among them are said to have gathered together. After this gathering together the twist comes because the next thing is they find themselves being thrown in the lake of fire and brimstone.
In the parable of the wheat and the tares. The tares are gathered in bundles in preparation to burn them in the furnace of fire. The correlation is quite clear.
However, the birds feeds on the flesh of those who remain, who are slain by the sword that proceeds out of the mouth of Christ.