Survivors of the Great Tribulation
Today’s passage: Revelation 7:13–17
Focus verse: “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” (Revelation 7:14)
If you ask people to name the main phrases or themes from the book of Revelation, many would say the mark of the beast, the great tribulation, the millennium, and Armageddon.
We’ve already discussed the mark of the beast. The millennium doesn’t even appear in Revelation (though “a thousand years” shows up in Revelation 20) and Armageddon is only mentioned once (Revelation 16:16).
For all the discussion and speculation it generates, the word tribulation only occurs once in the entire Bible. And it’s in this passage from Revelation.
Given one scant mention of the great tribulation, it’s perplexing to see all the conjecture this one idea has produced.
We’ll make no attempt here to put to rest the many conflicting theories about what the great tribulation means and when it will take place.
Remember, Jesus says no one knows when this will happen, except for the Father. So why attempt to uncover what Jesus says we can’t know?
What we do know about the great tribulation comes from this one verse. We can confirm, quite simply, that it will happen, and that some people will survive it. That’s it. That’s all the Bible teaches about the great tribulation.
These survivors of the great tribulation will have their robes washed white, purified by Jesus’s saving death, which he offered as a once-and-for-all sacrifice to make us right with Father God.
In John’s vision, one of the elders explains the outcome awaiting those who survive the great tribulation. This should be our focus, not the unknowable understanding of when.
The survivors of the great tribulation will serve God around the clock in his temple and before his throne. He will shelter them with his presence.
They are in a safe place at last. The pain and agony of life will no longer assault them.
They will never again be hungry or thirsty, with the need for physical sustenance no longer an issue. And the sun won’t afflict their labors with scorching heat anymore.
Jesus will be their shepherd. He will give them springs of living water to drink. And Father God will dry their tears.
Questions:
- What ideas do we have about the book of Revelation that we should push aside?
- Are we content that no one can know when the end will come?
- If we face the great tribulation, what can we do to survive it?
- What do we anticipate about spending eternity in heaven with God?
- Have we received Jesus’s living water?
[Discover more about Jesus’s living water in John 4:13–14 and 7:38. Read about living water in the Old Testament in Jeremiah 2:13, Jeremiah 17:13, and Zechariah 14:8.]
Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.
Read more in Peter’s devotional Bible study, A New Heaven and a New Earth: 40 Practical Insights from John’s Book of Revelation.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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