The eschatological period of divine judgment preceding the time of national Jewish redemption and the establishment of God’s kingdom on earth is known as the Tribulation period. This concept was part of Jesus’ eschatological teaching and was a frequent theme of the apostles and the early church. The primary source for the Tribulation doctrine developed from antecedent Old Testament usage. This is evident from the citations and allusions from the Old Testament in the principal New Testament eschatological texts of the Olivet Discourse and the Book of Revelation. Therefore, the meaning and usage of its tribulation terms are essential to an understanding of the New Testament doctrine. Various views exist in evangelical interpretation of the time known in the Gospels as “the Tribulation” or “the Great Tribulation.” In the first part of this essay I will consider briefly the various interpretations and in the second part look at how the New Testament concept of “the Tribulation” was developed from the Old Testament. The contention will be that an understanding of the Old Testament teaching will help us determine which view best interprets the New Testament presentation of the Tribulation.Various Views. The time of tribulation on earth spoken of in the New Testament is variously interpreted as being fulfilled at one of several different periods. The school of Realized Eschatology, begun by C.H. Dodd, holds that Jesus “suffered and died in the great tribulation.” They interpret every reference to tribulation as occurring during the lifetime, and particularly in the Passion, of Jesus. According to this interpretation, just as the eschatological expectation of tribulation was fulfilled in Christ’s sufferings, so that of eschatological salvation (the general resurrection) was inaugurated with Christ’s resurrection. The Reformed school (Amillennialists, Preterists, and Postmillennialists) interprets the Tribulation to take place just before the close of this age, which they hold is the millennium. Their Tribulation is the period during which Satan is released to go out and deceive the nations (Rev. 20:7-9). This text is taken as synonymous in time with the Tribulation predicted in the Olivet Discourse (Matt. 24:14, 21) and the apostasy spoken of as occurring in “the latter times” (1 Tim. 4:1-3). The Symbolical school interprets the Tribulation allegorically, so that the Tribulation and Millennium (including the new heaven and earth) are symbolic of Christian “death” and “resurrection” through baptism. Historicists hold that the Tribulation occurred in the experience of the Church in the past, usually at some point during the history of Roman persecutions. Those of Nero, Caligula, or Domitian are usually the chief contenders, however there may as many events located as there are historicists to posit them. The Preterist school interprets the fulfillment of Daniel’s seventy weeks by A.D. 70 with the events of the seventieth week taking place in the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple by the Romans. More extreme preterists hold that the Second Advent also occurred at this time, being symbolized in the Romans “coming in judgment” on the Jews.

While premillennialists agree on the Tribulation being future, they disagree on the duration of the Tribulation and the identity of the future “saints” who will be present during the Tribulation and for what part. The duration of the Tribulation is variously accepted to be three-and-one-half years, three-and-one-half plus years, or seven years. These differences in part relate to the different degrees of intensity experienced during this period. If one only considers the more severe outpourings of God’s wrath during the trumpet and bowl judgments, the Tribulation only encompasses this time (mid-tribulationalists, pre-wrath advocates). However, if one considers the first six seal judgments at the beginning of Daniel’s seventieth week as displays of divine wrath, the Tribulation covers this entire period (pretribulationalists). Although post-tribulationalists would generally hold that the Tribulation is seven years in duration, they are not as concerned with its extent because they hold that believers are protected from God’s wrath whenever it is outpoured. These differences derive from whether a group accepts or rejects dispensationalism. Pretribulationalists, who alone maintain a dispensational commitment, see those directly addressed in the Olivet Discourse to be exclusively Israel, rather than inclusive of the Church. The Church (composed of Jews and Gentiles) is to be removed before the seventieth week commences with the signing of the covenant with Antichrist (Dan. 9:27). Therefore the “Tribulation saints” are Jews who are restored to Messiah and Gentile proselytes to this form of Messianic Judaism. Thus, the distinguishable difference between believers in the present age and during the Tribulation is the restoration of Israel as the focus of God’s election. As non-dispensationalists, mid-tribulationalists, pre-wrath advocates, and post-tribulationalists see the Church within the Tribulation. Midtribulationalists see the Church surviving the first half of the seventieth week to be removed before the Great Tribulation commences. Pre-wrath advocates also see the Church in the first half of this period, but they do not interpret it as the seventieth week. This they believe begins only after the Temple is desecrated and the wrath of God begins to come upon earth. Thus, they take the Church past the mid-point point into the second half of the seven years, to be removed just prior to the descent of God’s wrath. Post-tribulationalists continue the Church until the end of the seventieth week, with the Church’s removal connected to the timing of the Second Advent.

The Old Testament Usage. In order to understand the contribution of the Old Testament to the doctrine of the Tribulation, it is necessary to first consider the linguistic terminology used to express the concept in the New Testament and then its background in the Old Testament.

The Greek term commonly employed in the New Testament as a technical expression for the Tribulation period is thlipsis (“wrath,” tribulation”). This may be observed in Luke’s substitution of the phrase anagke megale (“great distress”), Lk. 21:23 for Matthew’s thlipsis megale (“great tribulation”), Matt. 24:21, to distinguish the “days of vengeance” (the Roman destruction in A.D. 70) from the eschatological Tribulation. The Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint, used thlipsis to render the Hebrew term sar/sarah (“trouble, tribulation, distress”).This Hebrew term was especially used in contexts in which curses based on violations of the Mosaic covenant were threatened or pronounced and appears in principal the Old Testament texts alluded to by the New Testament (e.g., Deut. 4:30; Jer. 30:7; Dan. 12:1). Synonymous terms with supporting texts containing the concept of a future Tribulation are: Yom YHWH (“day of the Lord”) Obad. 15; Joel 1:15; 2:1, 11,31; 3:14; Amos 5:18, 20; Isa. 2:12; 13:6, 9; Zeph. 1:7, 14; Ezek. 13:5; 30:3; Zech. 14:1; cf. Yom YHWH hagadol vehanora’ (“great and terrible day of the Lord”) Mal. 4:5; Sar /sarah (“trouble, tribulation”) Deut. 4:30; Zeph. 1:16;’Et/yom sarah (“time/day of trouble”) Dan. 12:1; Zeph. 1:15;’Et sarah hi’ leya’acov (“day of Jacob’s trouble”) Jer. 30:7;Chil (“birthpangs”) Isa. 21:3; 26:17-18; 66:7; Jer. 4:31; Mic. 4:10 (cf. Jer. 30:6);Yom ‘edom (“the day of calamity”) Deut. 32:35; Obad. 12-14; Zaram (“indignation”) Isa. 26:20; Dan. 11:36; Ma’asehu zar (“the [Lord’s] strange work”) Isa. 28:21; Shot shotef (“overflowing scourge”) Isa. 28:15, 18; Yom naqam (“day of vengeance” (Isa. 34:8a; 35:4a; 61:2b; 63:4a);Yom ‘evrah (“day of wrath”); Zeph. 1:15; Yom ‘evrat YHWH (“day of the Lord’s wrath”) Zeph. 1:18;Yom mesuqah” (“day of distress”) Zeph. 1:15;Yom sho’ah (“day of destruction”), Zeph. 1:15; Yom mesho’ah (“day of desolation”) Zeph. 1:15;Yom hoshek u’apelah (“day of darkness and gloom”) Zeph. 1:15; Amos 5:18, 20; Joel 2:2; Yom ‘anan u’arapel (“day of clouds and thick darkness”) Zeph. 1:15; Joel 2:2; Yom shofar uteru’ah (“day of trumpet and alarm”) Zeph. 1:16; Yom ‘af YHWH (“day of the Lord’s anger”) Zeph. 2:2, 3; [Yom] sod mishaddai (“[day of] destruction, ruin, from the Almighty” (Joel 1:15); ‘Esh qina’to (“the fire of His jealosy”), Zeph. 1:18. Lesser expressions also are used to describe this period as a time when God “arises to shake violently the earth” (Isa. 2:19), to “make the earth utterly emptied and ruined” (Isa. 24:1, 3, 6), to “break down” and “dissolve” the earth (Isa. 24:19), or to “punish the kings” and “the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity” (Isa. 24:21; 26:21).

These terms for tribulation are not necessarily in themselves eschatological expressions of tribulation. This is usually conveyed in the context by temporal phrases that may denote both an indefinite and definite sense of futurity. In some cases, such as “the Day of the Lord,” the idomatic nature of prophetic speech allows for an immediate application (e.g. Assyrian or Babylonian destructions) or a more remote or ultimate application to a future event (Tribulation and Millennium). Another chronological expression of future time during which the Tribulation is predicted is indicated by the Hebrew phrase be’aharit hayyamim (“the latter days”). The eschatological connotation of this formula is especially prominent in the biblical Prophets (e.g., Isa. 2:2; Jer. 23:20; 34:20; 48:47; 49:39; Ezek. 38:16; Hos. 3:5; Mic. 4:1) and Daniel (2:28; 8:19, 23; 10:14; cf. 12:8), although it is by no means limited to them, and is found as early as the Pentateuch (e.g. Gen. 49:1; Num. 24:14; Deut. 4:29-31). When we examine the usage of the compound expression “latter days” in the Old Testament, we find that it is used in the general sense of “days to come” (cf. Gen. 49:1; Num. 24:14; Deut. 31:29), but more often has the more definite sense of a time in the future. This latter sense encompasses both near (historical) and far (eschatological) points of reference; some being of an immediate future, and others spanning a comprehensive period from the author’s vantage point until the Messianic age. By contrast, the Hebrew expression ‘et qetz (“end-time”) is distinct from the term “latter days.” While both are eschatological expressions, only ‘et qetz refers exclusively to the final eschatological period or event. In three texts (Amos 8:2; Lam. 4:18; Ezek. 7:2, 3, 6), qetz is employed in the context of the “Day of the Lord,” with clearly eschatological intent. In Dan. 8:19; 9:26; 11:27, 45; 12:6, 13 it has eschatological significance or refers to the end of the age. The combined construction ‘et qetz, which appears uniquely in Daniel, and then in only the latter half of the book, is strictly eschatological (cf. Dan. 8:17; 11:35, 40; 12:4, 9). Here it appears 11 times as a chronological marker of a specific eschatological period (cf. Dan. 9:21, 25; 11:6, 13, 14,24; 12:11). In Dan. 12:1-2, especially, it assumes the character of an apocalyptic terminus technicus denoting the final period that culminates the divine program, including all the events of that time.

The nature of the Tribulation is revealed by the characteristic terms we have seen as descriptive of this period. A brief catalog of such expressions gives a clear picture of the severity of this period: “wrath” (Zeph. 1:15, 18), “indignation” (Isa. 26:20-21; 34:1-3), “trouble, distress” (Jer. 30:7; Zeph. 1:14-15; Dan. 12:1), “destruction” (Joel 1:15), “darkness” (Joel 2:2; Amos 5:18; Zeph. 1:14-18), “desolation” (Dan. 9:27; Zeph. 1:14-15), “fire, burning” (Zeph. 1:18; Isa. 24:6), “punishment” (Isa. 24:21), “overflowing scourge” (Isa. 28:15, 18), and “vengeance” (Isa. 34:8; 35:4; 61:2). The accumulation of such terms dealing with divine judgment is exceptional, and it was this characteristic above all that served to highlight and heighten these references and project them onto the eschatological stage. The exceptional nature of the Tribulation is earmarked by such phrases as: “that day is great, there is none like it” (Jer. 30:7), or “such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time” (Dan. 12:1). These expressions emphasize the uniqueness of this specific judgment, while the accompanying contextual descriptions of the effects such judgments have on both God and Israel, affirm that this is a time unparalleled in Israel’s previous history. Understanding the eschatological nature revealed by these Old Testament expressions of final judgment, Jesus likewise qualified the Tribulation of the end-time with a language patterned after Dan. 12:1: “such as has not occurred since the beginning of the creation which God created, until now, and never shall” (cf. Matt. 24:21; Mk. 13:19).

The nature of the Tribulation is also conveyed in related contexts by the use of a figure of intense suffering and expectation. Specifically, the experience of end-time judgment in the Tribulation is depicted by the travail of childbirth, Hebrew: kayyoledah, “as a woman giving birth” (Jer. 30:5-6 ). The eschatological “Day of the Lord” is often associated with the expression of birth-pangs as well (cf. Isa. 13:8; 25:17-18; 66:7-8; Jer. 22:23; 48:41; Hos. 13:13; Zeph. 1:14-18; Mic. 4:9-10; 5:1[2]). The New Testament also makes this association (cf. 1 Thess. 5:2-3). The Hebrew expression for these pains is derived from the root chil, which has the basic meaning of “being in labor,” with the resultant idea of “fear” and “trembling.” From the use of this expression in the Olivet Discourse, it can be seen that the first half of the Tribulation is characterized by judicial “beginning birth-pangs” (Matt. 24:8), while in the second half judgment comes to full term, hence the designation “Great Tribulation” (Matt. 24:21). Just as the woman must endure the entire period of labor before giving birth, so Israel must endure the entire seven-year period of Tribulation. The divisions of this period of Tribulation are also illustrated by the figure, for just as the natural process intensifies toward the expectation of delivery after the labor ends, so here the Tribulation moves progressively toward the Second Advent (vss. 30-31), which takes place “immediately after” the Tribulation ends (vs. 29).

An explicit Old Testament passage for the Tribulation is Jer. 30:7. The reference to “Jacob” is to Israel as a national entity, and therefore the time of distress refers to a period of national trouble unlike any other. To what time of trouble was Jeremiah referring? As to the time of this trouble, some have argued that the use of the Hebrew time marker ‘et (and its translation by the LXX as chronos), indicates a reference to a specific future time in contrast to a distant future. Interpreted literally, none of these elements could be fulfilled in these terms except in the future eschatological context (the days concluding and following the Tribulation period, cf. Matt. 24:29ff/ Mk. 13:24ff).

The premiere Tribulation text, cited by Jesus in the Olivet Discourse (Matt. 24:15; Mk. 13:14), and alluded to by Paul in his Day of the Lord Discourse (2 Thess. 2:4), is Daniel’s prophecy of the seventieth week (Dan. 9:27). Detailing the events of the seven-year period of Tribulation, this passage uniquely set off the beginning, mid-point, and ending of the Tribulation. The beginning (vs. 27a) is designated as the time Israel enters into a covenant with the figure known as “the prince” (Hebrew nagid, “leader”) that was predicted to come, and whose “people” (i.e., Gentiles [Romans]) destroyed the [Second] Temple (verse 26). Daniel’s prophecy depicts the Tribulation period views the entire seventieth week as a time of wrath (cf. Dan. 12:7). The exilic condition he suffers is understood as a punishment for transgression, sin, and iniquity (Dan. 9:24b-c), and this condition will continue as a decree of divine wrath against Israel until the end when everlasting righteousness and the messianic consecration of the Temple can take place (vs. 24d-f). The resolution of Daniel’s concerns for his city and people (Dan. 9:.2, 24a) will not be realized until after the Seventieth Week has concluded and its events of deception and desecration have passed (Dan. 9:27; 12:1). Furthermore, Daniel understood that the desolation which will occur from the middle of the Seventieth Week is connected with the covenant that also commenced this period. The covenant with Antichrist (Dan. 9:27a; Rev. 11:1), and the cessation of the sacrificial program as a result of the Abomination of Desolation (Dan. 9:27b; ; Rev. 11:2) are signal events of the Tribulation (marking its beginning and midpoint). Therefore our Lord chose this text to warn a future Jewish generation that from the beginning of the birth-pangs they were already in the eschatological Tribulation (Matt. 24:15; Mk. 13:14; cf. 2 Thess. 2:4). The Seventy Weeks prophecy also evidences that Tribulation terms deal exclusively with a national Jewish context. The phrase “your people,” i.e., Daniel’s Nation (vs. 24), emphasizes this exclusivity. The context demonstrates this, describing the judgment as both the apex of punishment for national Israel, and the judgment of Israel’s Gentile oppressors. Tribulation contexts also contain the elements of judgment, repentance, and blessing always in relation to the Land of Israel (cf. Rev. 11:18 with Dan. 9:27). Thus the application of Tribulation terms are limited to a period of national Jewish residency in the land, and to the people that represent that resident population.

When we examine the common elements of Old Testament references to the Tribulation, in every case the expected fulfillment is at a time corresponding to the end-time. The scope of the judgment is in most cases unparalleled and required salvation (physical deliverance) as a sign of the severity of the event. Each context involves idolatry in some form, whether generally as false prophets, or specifically as the Antichrist and the Abomination of Desolation, and each has in the context a reference to either the Temple or a promise of theocratic restoration.

Finally, the Old Testament presents at least five purposes for the Tribulation. First, the Tribulation will complete the decreed period of national Israel’s judicial hardening as punishment for her rejection of the messianic program, which the partial return from exile did not remove, and which culminated in the national rejection of Jesus (Isa. 6:9-13; 24:1-6; cf. Jn. 12:37-41; Rom. 11:7-10). Second, it will produce a messianic revival among Jewish people scattered throughout the world (Deut. 4:27-30; cf. Rev. 7:1-4; Matt. 24:14). Third, the Tribulation will convince the Jewish Nation of their need for the Messiah in order to produce a national regeneration (Dan. 12:5-7; Jer. 31:31-34; Ezek. 20:34-38; 36:25-27; 37:1-14; Zech. 12:9-13:2; Isa. 59:20-21). This will result in a massive return of Jews to the Land of Israel (Zech. 8:7-8; Ezek. 36:24; 37:21). Fourth, it will end the time of Gentiles and effect the deliverance of the Jewish People from Gentile dominion (Isa. 24:21-23; 59:16-20; cf. Matt. 24:29-31/Mk. 13:24-27; Rom. 11:25). Fifth, the Tribulation will purge the earth of wicked people in order to establish the Messianic Kingdom in righteousness (Isa. 13:9; 24:19-20; Ezek. 37:23; Zech. 13:2; 14:9; Isa. 11:9). This violent reduction of the world’s unbelieving population will result from the divine judgments unleashed throughout the Tribulation (Rev. 6-18), climaxing with the battles of Armageddon under King Messiah (Rev. 19), and His purge of both rebel Jews and oppressive Gentiles at the end of the Tribulation (Ezek. 20:33-38; Matt. 25:31-46).

Bibliography

[Various viewpoints]: Richard R. Reiter, ed. The Rapture: Pre-, Mid-, or Post-Tribulational? (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), Dale C. Allison,Jr., The End of the Ages Has Come: An Early Interpretation of the Passion and Resurrection of Jesus. Studies of the New Testament and Its World. ed. John Riches (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1985) [Realized Eschatology], Kenneth Gentry, Jr., He Shall Have Dominion: A Postmillennial Eschatology (Tyler, Texas: Institute for Christian Economics, 1992), [Postmillennial], Robert Gundry, The Church and the Tribulation (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1973) [Posttribulationalist], Marvin Rosenthal, The Pre-Wrath Rapture of the Church (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990) [Pre-wrath], Gary DeMar, Last Days Madness (Tyler, Texas: Institute for Christian Economics, 1993) [Preterist], William Hendriksen, More Than Conquerors (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1971) [Amillennial], [Pretribulational perspective]: William F. Kerr, “Tribulation for the Church – But Not the Tribulation,” Understanding the Times. eds. William Culbertson, Herman B. Centz (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1956), pp. 98-106, John F. Walvoord, The Blessed Hope and the Tribulation: A Historical and Biblical Study of Posttribulationism (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1976), Gerald B. Stanton, Kept from the Hour: Biblical Evidence for the Pretribulational Return of Christ (Miami Springs, Florida: Schoettle Publishing Co., 1991), Renald Showers, Maranatha: Our Lord Come! (Bellmaer, New Jersey: The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, 1995), T. Ice and T. Demy, eds., When the Trumpet Sounds: Today’s Foremost Authorities Speak Out on End-Time Controversies (Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 1995). Old Testament usage]:J. Randall Price, “Old Testament Tribulation Terms,” When the Trumpet Sounds. eds. T. Ice and T. Demy (Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 1995), pp. 57-83, J. Dwight Pentecost, Things to Come: A Study in Biblical Eschatology (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing Co., 1971), pp. 229-250, T. Ice and T. Demy, The Truth About the Tribulation. Pocket Prophecy Series (Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 1995), pp.8-12, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament s.v. “sar/sarah,” by (Chicago: Moody Press, 19 ), 2: –

Once Messiah has returned to earth as King and established His Messianic Kingdom, with its center at the gloriously rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem (Zech. 6:12-15; 8:3; Ezek. 40-48; Matt. 19:28; 25:31-32; Rev. 20:4), the festival calendar will be resumed as predicted by the prophet Ezekiel: “They shall also keep My laws and My statutes in all My appointed feasts, and sanctify My sabbaths” (Ezek. 44:24; cf. Zeph. 3:18). However, of the seven feasts of the Lord only the Feast of Tabernacles has its typical fulfillment in the Millennium as a demonstration of God’s restoration program for Israel in keeping with the terms of the Abrahamic and New Covenants. These covenants promised safe territorial boundaries to Israel where it would serve spiritually as a blessing and witness to the Gentile nations (Gen. 12:2-3; 15:18; Isa. 2:2-4; 60:3; Jer. 32:37-41; 33:16; Ezek. 37:25-28). Confirmation of a Millennial setting for this feast is evident from its many messianic and prophetic features which could only be realized in the time of Israel’s future redemption and restoration. For example, the term “tabernacles” (Hebrew, succot; Greek, skene) has its meaning as part of a restoration promise of God to return to earth and “tabernacle” with Israel in a way never before experienced in history: “Thus says the Lord, ‘I will return to Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem …” (Zech. 8:3a); “I will set My Sanctuary in their midst forever. My dwelling place also will be with them … (Ezek. 37:26-27); “the Lord of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and His glory will be before His elders” (Isa. 24:23). While this “tabernacling” with Israel will take the form of God’s renewed presence in the Temple, the prophet Isaiah indicates that a greater display of this will be witnessed than at any time or at Temple in the past: “Then the Lord will create over the whole area of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud by day, even smoke, and the brightness of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory will be a canopy” (Isa. 4:5). The “canopy” (Hebrew, huppah) of God’s glory in this verse is stated in the next verse to be a “tabernacle (Hebrew, sukkah) from the heat by day, and refuge and protection from the storm and the rain.” This wording is intended to connect the past experience of deliverance (from the Pharaoh in Egypt) and temporary man-made shelters (Lev. 23:42-43) with the future deliverance (from the Antichrist in the Tribulation) and permanent God-given sanctuary. Ezekiel depicts the method of this future “tabernacling” with the return of God’s Shekinah Glory to the Temple (Ezek. 43:1-7), while Jeremiah’s reveals its result as Jerusalem becomes “the Throne of the Lord, and all the nations will be gathered to it…” (Jer. 3:17). Such a divine preview of this future “tabernacling glory” was given to correct Peter’s limited concept of building temporary “tabernacles” for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah at the transfiguration (Matt. 17:1-5; Mk. 9:2-7; Lk. 9:28-35). Indeed later Jewish interpretation saw in the reference to “tabernacles” not only the Israelites temporary shelters in the wilderness but also the divine sukkah (the Shekinah) which had “brought them out of the land of Egypt” (Lev. 23:43). In this way they connected the Feast of Tabernacles with the promise that God’s presence would dwell with Israel in the future as it had in the past (Hag. 2:5-9; cf. Zeph. 3:15c).In a similar way Jesus had made this connection in His own Person as the “Word become flesh tabernacling among us” (Jn. 1:14). At the Feast of Tabernacles He combined two of the messainic symbols of the feast – the water libation and the light of the candelabras in the Temple precinct – to illustrate the fulfillment in Himself of the promised restoration of Israel under Messiah in the Millennial Age. The significance of this was displayed on the final day (seventh day) of this feast is known as Hoshana Rabbah (The Day of the “Great Hosanna), taken from liturgical passages recited throughout the feast which begin with the Hebrew imperative hoshana (“save now”). At this time the people waved their lulavs (palm branches) while the Levites chanted the Hallel (Pss. 113-118). The name of this day – Hosanna – comes from the closing words of Psalm 118 which reads: “Save now, I beseech Thee, O Lord… Blessed be he who comes in the name of the Lord…” This prayer for the speedy advent of messianic redemption accompanied a special ceremony known as the “water-drawing festival” (Hebrew, simhat bet hassoevah). At this ceremony water was drawn from the Pool of Siloam in a ceremony known as) and poured on the corner of the Altar in the Temple as a libation offering. Its purpose was in connection with prayers for the annual rains, but also had symbolic messianic connections. It was here at the Siloam (Hebrew, Shiloach, “He sent”) that the fuller’s had washed their clothing (Isa. 7:3), a figure drawn upon by the prophets to illustrate the messianic purification of the Millennial Temple’s servants (see Mal. 3:2-3). Here, too, the Prophet Isaiah had challenged Ahaz to trust God not man and revealed a messianic sign (Isa. 7:7-14). Succot also celebrates God’s provision of refuge in the wilderness and recalls His prophetic promise of rescue at the time of Jacob’s trouble (Jer. 30:7), and restoration in the future kingdom of Messiah. This water was taken to the Temple and poured over the corner of the Altar, a ritual based on an oral tradition that dated to the time of Moses (Ta’anit 3a, Succot 44b, 44a). The significance of the pouring of water was both symbolic and prophetic. Its symbolic purpose was a prayer for rain, since the summer was about to end and the rainy season begin. This prayer for rain demonstrated Israel’s dependence upon the Lord, an act of faith that will be required of all nations in connection with this ceremony in the Millennial Temple (Zech. 14:16-19). Its prophetic purpose was messianic, looking forward to the outpouring of the Ruach Ha-Kodesh (“the Holy Spirit”) upon Israel and the nations under the New Covenant in the Kingdom Age (Ezek. 36:27; Joel 2:28).

This ceremony forms the background for Jesus’ arrival at the feast as described in Matthew 21:9 and John 7:37-39 riding into the Temple precinct through the Eastern Gate entrance, greeted by shouts of Hosanna, “Save us please!”, and then proclaiming to the crowds that He was the true giver of the “water” and the “light” of the world (Jn. 7:37-38; 8:12). On this day during Temple times willow branches were beaten against the pavement next to the Great Altar to symbolize the casting away of the nation’s sins. In addition, at this time Israel’s return to blessing will include the spiritual instruction and blessing of the nations, who will join with them in the ongoing celebration of Succot (Zech. 14:16-19). It is also significant that the Scripture portion from the Prophets read in the synagogue on the Sabbath during the Feast of Tabernacles is Ezekiel chapter 38 which deals with the future battle of Gog and Magog in which the Lord miraculously preserves Israel in an end-time war.

The use of “tabernacle” also recalls the famous prophecy of the restoration of the Davidic Kingdom (“the tabernacle of David”) given in Amos 9:11: “After these things I will return and I will rebuild the tabernacle of David which has fallen, and I will rebuild its ruins and I will restore it, in order that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who are called by My name …” The fulfillment of this prophecy, as explained in Acts 15:14-18, will take place after the full number of Gentiles has been grafted onto the olive tree (in keeping with the blessing of the Gentiles in the Abrahamic Covenant) through faith” (Rom. 11:25) at the completion of the Church Age. those Gentiles (of the sheep nations, who came to faith in the Jewish Messiah during the time of Jacob’s Trouble, see Matt. 25:34-40) will join with redeemed Israelites in the true worship of God. In addition, the apostle John specifically used the imagery of the Feast of Tabernacles in relation to the Tribulation martyrs from among the nations. He depicted these Gentiles as having “palm branches” and “serving in His Temple” while God “spreads His tabernacle over them” and Jesus “guides them to springs of living water” (Rev. 7:9-17). Such Gentile inclusion was anticipated by the alternate name for the feast as “the Feast of Ingathering” (Exodus 23:15-16) and demonstrated during the feast in Second Temple times as Jewish men took part in a Temple ritual where seventy sacrifices were offered in atonement for the sins of the nations that had come from the sons of Noah. The prophets cited this future inclusion of Gentile nations, who formerly oppressed Israel, but will become a part of the worshipping community, as one of the evidences of the changed conditions under Messiah’s New Covenant (Jer. 31:31-34). For example, Zechariah states that “many nations will join themselves to Lord in that day and will become My people …” (Zech. 2:11), while Isaiah describes the Millennial Temple as “a house of prayer for all the peoples” (Isa. 56:7; cf. Matt. 21:12; Mk. 11:17; Lk. 19:46) to which all of the nations of the earth will come to learn the ways of the Lord (Isa. 2:2c-3; 60:3; 62:2), to behold God’s glory (Isa. 60:3; 62:2; 66:18), offer sacrifices (Isa. 56:6; 66:20) and to pay material tribute (Isa. 60: 5; 66:18-19; cf. Hag. 2:7-8; Zech. 8:22; Rev. 21:24).

This last reference to Gentile payment of tribute also forms the subject of the only explicit mention of the Feast of Tabernacles in a Millennial context: “Then it will come about that any who are left of all the nations that went against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles” (Zech. 14:16). This statement is part of the conclusion to a section of Zechariah (chs. 12-14) which detail the Gentile invasion of Jerusalem during the campaigns of Armageddon. In the immediate context (ch. 14) a summary of events reveal prophetic aspects predicted by the feast: (1) the advent of Messiah (vss. 3-4), the rescue and restoration of the Jewish Remnant (vs. 5; cf. Lk. 21:27-28), the experience of heaven-sent light and living water (vss. 7-8), the recognition of Messiah as universal King (vs. 9), the transformation of Jerusalem (vs. 10), and the gathering of the wealth of the Gentile nations (vs. 14). Those who are addressed as being obligated to observe the Feast of Tabernacles in verse 14 are the remnants of the Gentile nations who were previously allied with the Antichrist in the war against the Holy City (Zech. 12:3, 9; 14:2, 12; cf. Rev. 19:19; Psa. 2:1-3). Although those in the armies who were present in the battle will have been destroyed by a deadly plague (vss. 12-13), others will remain in these countries to appear before Messiah’s judgment seat at the conclusion of the conflict (Matt. 25:31-32). Those who converted to Messiah and His rule (Rev. 15:3-4), as evidenced by their costly compassion to the Jewish Remnant (Matt. 25:35-40) will continue into the Millennial Kingdom. Nevertheless, under the rod-of-iron rule of Messiah (Psa. 2:9; Rev. 19:15), representatives of these nations will be required to demonstrate their allegiance to King Messiah by annual appearance at His Throne-City with tribute and material offerings (as token appreciation of divine provision). This act is in accordance with an ancient association of the Feast of Tabernacles with the recognition of the king as God’s son, an act alluded to in Psalm 2:10-11: “Now therefore, O kings, show discernment; take warning, O judges of the earth. Worship the Lord with reverence, and rejoice with trembling. Do homage to the Son, lest He become angry and you perish in the way …” The ancient observance of the feast was also followed by a levitically-led ceremony of covenant renewal (Neh. 9:1-38) in which a national allegiance to the Lord was reaffirmed (Neh. 10:29). Therefore, a warning is issued in this passage to these national representatives if they should fail to observe the Feast of Tabernacles (vss. 17-19), which would be tantamount to an act of spiritual and national rebellion. Remembering that part of the ritual of the Feast of Tabernacles was in view of receiving rain (specifically the former rains), one punishment for those nations that fail to appear annually in Jerusalem will be a withholding of rain, the very gift which made possible their gifts. The other punishment will be a plague, which would allow the inclusion of Egypt whose natural productivity depends more on the gift of the Nile than the gift of rains and whose punishment to secure their acknowledgment of Lord’s sovereignty during the time of the exodus had been plagues.

The Feast of Tabernacles will serve as the instrument to universally unite these nations in their allegiance to Jesus as King Messiah and Sovereign Lord and Judge (Zech. 14:9, 17; Isa. 2:4) and possibly provide an occasion for the Jewish People to fulfill their destiny as a light to the nations in spiritual instruction to these national representatives (Zech. 8:22-23; Isa. 2:3; cf. Hab. 2:14). Because the nations become vassals of Lord, they have also the right to be called “His people,” just as He as their suzerain can be called “their God.” This covenantal language of identification (“My people”) is absent in Zechariah’s presentation of the restored Gentile nations, but it is found elsewhere (cf. Jer. 24:7; 30:22; 31:33; 32:38). Isaiah elevates the nations of Egypt and Syria to covenantal status (Isa. 19:24-25), making them co-participants in both the obligations and benefits of the Temple (Isa. 19:21; 27:13; 56:6-8; 60:3, 21; 66:20). The tribute gifts required by the nations (mentioned in Zech. 14:14 but not in the Feast of Tabernacles text) are elsewhere described as the spoils of war which Lord as the suzerain (over vassals) has full right to receive. The wealth of the conquered nations will accrue to Messiah’s Millennial Temple in such a way as to fill it with abundance (a fitting contrast to Israel’s past post-exilic poverty), increasing its splendor and value (Zeph. 3:20; Hag. 2:6-7a, 22).

All that God has purposed and planned through His provision as the Lord of His people will be finally fulfilled and celebrated in the Millennial Feast of Tabernacles. The revelation of this Millennial realization should prompt us to gratefully acknowledge God’s gift of Messiah for us today and His constant “tabernacling” with us through His indwelling Holy Spirit (Matt. 28:20b; Eph. 2:22). As the future feast will openly demonstrate the unity of Jew and Gentile as they alike bow to Jesus as their Messiah and Lord, it encourages the Body of Messiah today to foster greater unity among all its members before a watching world (Jn. 17:20-21; Eph. 2:14-18). As we do these things in the present age, we honor the Lord of the feast who will one day tabernacle with us forever: “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them” (Rev. 21:3; cf. vs. 22).

Dr. Randall Price is President of World of the Bible Ministries, Inc., an organization that explores and explains the ancient, modern, and prophetic Middle East. For a free subscription to his bi-monthly newsletter please e-mail him at wbmrandl@itouch.net or address him at: P.O.B. 827, San Marcos, TX 78667-0827.