The time of the end prophesied in the Bible refers to a time when Christ will come again, God’s judgment comes to earth, and God’s kingdom begins to reign on earth.
The timing of when this begins is unknown (only God the Father knows). But the end will begin with a miraculous event called the Rapture.
The Rapture
The Rapture is when Jesus comes to earth to gather His disciples. His disciples are those who believe in Him and follow Him. They are His bride in the church: “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church” (Ephesians 5:31-32).
“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)
The way Jesus comes to get us is very similar to what happens during a Jewish wedding. Jesus was born Jewish. So according to Jewish tradition, the bridegroom proposes to the bride by offering a price for her. Jesus paid a high price for us through His blood. He is preparing a place for us in His Father’s house. According to Jewish tradition, a man must get his father’s approval on his bridal chamber before he can go get the bride. (The reason is, if it were up to the bridegroom, he might throw up a shack and go get his girl!) [1]
So Jesus also is waiting for the Father to approve of the place He is building for us in heaven. Once the Father decides the place is ready, Jesus will come to get His bride.
Jesus said, “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:2-3).
The rapture is when Jesus comes to gather us if we are still on earth at that time. Those who are taken during the rapture will not experience the Tribulation. For those who already died in Christ, their spirits are already in heaven. During the rapture, they will receive new resurrected bodies (1 Thessalonians 4:16). Those who are alive on earth will also receive new heavenly bodies.
“Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52)
No one knows when this time will be; only the Father knows. Jesus said: “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone” (Matthew 24:36).
Be ready for the wedding
So this is why Jesus tells us to always be ready. He told the story of ten virgins who were waiting for their bridegroom (Matthew 25:1-13). The bridegroom comes suddenly at night with his friends. They approach the place where the virgins are. And suddenly, someone in the party gives a shout. The virgins immediately know the bridegroom is here.
So they trim their lamps and go out to meet Him. Those who are ready with oil are ready to go in with Him. But those who are not ready are cast out. How can we be ready?
Being ready means obeying God until He comes. Jesus said: “Be on guard, so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap; for it will come upon all those who dwell on the face of all the earth. But keep on the alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:34-36).
Therefore, we should not waste life in self indulgence or drunkenness or the worries of this world, but be following God and obeying Him.
For those who are ready, we are taken to heaven and will be wedded to Christ. We will know Jesus in a way that is currently a mystery. “For He says, ‘The two shall become one flesh.’ But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him” (1 Corinthians 6:16-17). This is a spiritual oneness we will experience with Christ in a way that surpasses the love of husband and wife who become one flesh.
We will also be judged by Christ for what we did on earth. For work that stands up to His test, we will receive rewards. Otherwise, we will suffer loss but the person himself will be saved (1 Corinthians 3:11-15).
There will be a party in heaven. This party is a feast for our wedding (during this time, the Tribulation or time of distress happens on earth).
The Tribulation
Out of the Tribulation, which lasts about seven years, many new Christians will be born (Revelation 7:9-17). The gospel will also be preached by new Christians, two special witnesses (Revelation 11:1-14), and angels (Revelation 14:6).
During the Tribulation, the evil one (Antichrist) will reign on earth and kill many people (primarily new Christians). There will also be plagues coming from God to punish unbelievers (most of these plagues are described in the book of Revelation).
During this time, many people will be tempted to worship the beast (that comes from the evil one) in order to save their own lives. But God warns people on earth to not worship the beast, and to not take his mark (his name or the number six hundred sixty-six) on their bodies.
“Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, ‘If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.'” (Revelation 14:9-10)
The gospel will be suppressed during the time of the reign of the Antichrist. During this time, new Christians will be persecuted and limited in their ability to spread God’s word. However, God’s two witnesses will have power to preach for 1260 days (about 3.5 years).
“‘And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.’ These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. And if anyone wants to harm them, fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; so if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way.” (Revelation 11:3-5)
These two human witnesses will testify of God’s ways and what they have seen in heaven. It is very likely they are Enoch and John. Enoch was taken to heaven by God because he was pleasing to Him (Hebrews 11:5). And John was rumored to not die until Jesus comes to gather His elect (John 21:20-23).
After the two witnesses finish their testimony, they will be killed by their enemies. But God will give life to them again and take them back to heaven (Revelation 11:7-10).
Nation of Israel
The nation of Israel will get a chance to flee into the wilderness.
“A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; and she was with child; and she cried out, being in labor and in pain to give birth… And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to God and to His throne. Then the woman fled into the wilderness where she had a place prepared by God, so that there she would be nourished for one thousand two hundred and sixty days.” (Revelation 12: 1-2,5-6)
During the worst period of the Tribulation (the last 3.5 years), Israel as a nation will be led by God to escape the evil one.
God will teach them again in the wilderness (like during the time of Exodus thousands of years ago when they came out of Egypt).
“‘…I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face. As I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you,’ declares the Lord God. ‘I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant; and I will purge from you the rebels and those who transgress against Me…'” (Ezekiel 20:36-38)
God will discipline the nation of Israel in the wilderness, and this time Israel will be saved by believing in the Messiah.
“…so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written,
‘The Deliverer will come from Zion,
He will remove ungodliness from Jacob.’
‘This is My covenant with them,
When I take away their sins.'” (Romans 11:26-27)
After time in the wilderness, God will bring the people of Israel back into their land:
“‘For on My holy mountain, on the high mountain of Israel,’ declares the Lord God, ‘there the whole house of Israel, all of them, will serve Me in the land; there I will accept them and there I will seek your contributions and the choicest of your gifts, with all your holy things.'” (Ezekiel 20:40)
A Thousand Year Reign
At the end of the seven years of Tribulation, Christ will come to earth to reign for a thousand years. The evil one will be bound and kept in chains so that he cannot tempt anyone during this time (Revelation 20:1-3). People will experience what it is like for God to reign on earth. Christians will also reign with Him in new bodies on earth. At the end of the thousand-year reign, the evil one will be released again for a short time to tempt the nations. There will be another rebellion (Revelation 20:7-10). But God will defeat and punish the rebels.
Then everyone (who is an unbeliever) will be judged (the living and the dead) according to their deeds (Revelation 20:11-15).
A New Heaven and New Earth
Finally, God will create a new heaven and new earth. And there will be no more pain or death. There will be new ages to come, and God’s children will reign with Him forever (Revelation 21-22).
“Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard,
And which have not entered the heart of man,
All that God has prepared for those who love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9)
[1] Levitt, Zola. In My Father’s House (Dallas, Texas: Zola Levitt Ministries, 1981), pp.13-14.
To learn more, see How to Prepare for the End Times.
Read the book of Revelation in the Bible.