Useful Bible Studies > Revelation Commentary > chapter 16
John has a special name for the day of the battle at Armageddon. He calls it ‘the great day of God, who has all power’. This is the day that God has chosen to show the greatness of his power. This is the day when God will defeat every evil force, both in this world and in the spirit world. On this day, God will show that he really is the God of heaven and earth, and the judge of everyone.
In many places, the Bible uses the phrase ‘the day of the Lord (God)’ with a similar meaning. Sometimes, as in Zechariah 14:4-9, the phrase is simply ‘that day’. The meaning was so clear that no further explanation was necessary. On several occasions, the phrase is ‘the day of the Lord’s anger’.
Perhaps we may find the origin of the phrase in Job’s argument in Job 24:1. A human judge chooses the day when he will act in judgement. Job thought that God should do the same thing.
Then, God’s people had experiences like that in 1 Samuel 14:15, when God acted to defeat an enemy in battle. Another example is 1 Samuel 7:9-10. On such occasions, God was acting in judgement to save his people from a much stronger enemy. When Israel suffered troubles, its people were eager for another ‘day of the Lord’. Amos had to warn evil people that they must not expect any help from God on such a day (Amos 5:18-20).
Isaiah and Zechariah, in particular, saw that there will be one final ‘day of the Lord’. On that day, God will act in judgement against all that is evil (Isaiah 2:12-21). On that day, God will fight against the nations (Zechariah 14:3). On that day, he will forgive his people in Israel (Zechariah 3:9-10; Zechariah 13:1-2). On that day, he will rule the world (Zechariah 14:9); his rule will never end.
Next part: Be ready for Christ’s return (Revelation 16:15)
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© 2016, Keith Simons.