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When the Antichrist invades Israel, breaking the seven-year covenant, several things are going to take place in quick succession. This marks the beginning of the Great Tribulation. It is at this point that the fifth seal of Revelation is opened.
Revelation 6:9-11
9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: 10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? 11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
In John’s day, Christians were already being killed. But Revelation 4:1 tells us this vision is not about the ongoing persecution of his time. It is about what must come in the future. This seal introduces us to a new season of persecution—and it is going to be the final season.
That is how we can know the seal is opened when the last half of the Tribulation begins. It is the final season of persecution, which takes place during the last three and a half years of the Tribulation.
This season of persecution begins as the Antichrist makes war with the saints.
Daniel 7:21-22
21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; 22 Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.
Revelation 13:5-7
5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. 6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
Revelation 13:15
15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.
The Bible tells us that the Antichrist is given forty-two months (three and a half years) to make war against the saints. This will be a time when every one of those appointed to martyrdom is finally killed, as their brethren were. This will last until the end of the Tribulation period and will never happen again. This is the final season. This is the opening of the fifth seal.
The Sacrifice of the Saints
In Revelation 6:10, we see the souls of the martyrs of Jesus in heaven under the altar. The fact that they are under the altar tells us their lives were sacrifices offered to God. These sacrifices were not meaningless.
Hebrews 10:1-4
1 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. 2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. 3 But in those sacrifices is a remembrance again made of sins every year. 4 For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.
The sacrifices on the altar in the Old Testament could never take away sin. But they were not meaningless—they pointed to the coming sacrifice of Jesus. In the same way, the sacrifices of the martyrs of Jesus point to His first and second coming. They testify that He is worthy for them to die for, because He died for them, and He gives them hope of a resurrection. Their deaths are shining examples to the world.
Daniel 11:32-35
32 And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits. 33 And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days. 34 Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries. 35 And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.
God will use this time to refine His people. Their faith will be tested and strengthened through the fire. As a result, their sacrifices will serve as examples to instruct as many as have not taken the mark to remain faithful even unto death. The urgency of this message will be clear, because there is very little time left.
Persecution of Christians Will Come Swiftly
The persecution of the saints does not simply ramp up over the next three and a half years—it is a sudden explosion of hatred.
Mark 13:12-19
12 Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death. 13 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. 14 But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains: 15 And let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take any thing out of his house: 16 And let him that is in the field not turn back again for to take up his garment. 17 But woe to them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! 18 And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter. 19 For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be.
Jesus warns that there will be no time left to prepare once the Antichrist has invaded Israel and taken over the temple. Those in Judaea are commanded to flee into the mountains immediately, because the time of persecution will be sudden, not gradual.
Overnight, the world will turn against the saints to kill them. Yet God does not say that all of the saints will die. In fact, Scripture tells us there will be survivors.
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
16 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: 17 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.
Revelation 7:2-4
2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, 3 Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. 4 And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.
There has been some debate about whether it is only the one hundred and forty-four thousand who remain, or if there are other Gentile Christians who are alive and remain as well. But there are a few clues that suggest Gentile Christians will also be alive at the end.
First, Paul was an apostle to the Gentiles (Romans 11:13; Galatians 2:7–9; Acts 9:15; Acts 13:46). The Thessalonians included some Jews, but were mostly Gentile believers who had come to faith in Christ through Paul’s preaching. The emphasis in 1 and 2 Thessalonians is on Gentile believers facing persecution from pagan neighbors, not a primarily Jewish audience.
So when he said, “we which are alive and remain,” he was speaking to Gentile Christians.
Just after the list is given counting the Jewish survivors, Revelation 7:9–10 also mentions a great multitude which no man could number, of all nations, kindreds, people, and tongues. These came out of great tribulation, which likely indicates survival through it (Revelation 7:13–14).
The Hour of Temptation
Revelation 3:10
10 Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
Sadly, not all Christians have kept the word of God close enough to their hearts to understand the things He says are coming. Because of that, many will be caught unaware in that day. But the wise will be ready, and because of that, they will be kept from the temptation that will try others.
Luke explains this in greater detail.
Luke 21:16-19
16 And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. 17 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake. 18 But there shall not an hair of your head perish. 19 In your patience possess ye your souls.
Luke has just said that some of them would be put to death, yet others are told, “there shall not a hair of your head perish.”
Luke 21:36
34 And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. 35 For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.
Those thought worthy to escape the suffering all around them are those who have kept the word of His patience. Luke echoes the words in Revelation about keeping the word of His patience, saying, “In your patience possess ye your souls.” Those who are watching and prepared will be safe, because they were not caught unprepared. Those who do not watch will be caught unprepared and will suffer because of it.
Note that the church is not raptured before the Great Tribulation—it endures it. See this study and this one for more information on that.
It is important to understand that there is not a rapture of the church before or in the middle of the Tribulation. Jesus is clear that “ye will have tribulation.” The passage in Luke about being kept from this hour is not referring to a heavenly evacuation, but to being prepared to endure and survive.
If you missed the study on the timing of the rapture, please refer to it. Many will be expecting it and will be unprepared when it does not come. It is important to gain a clear, biblical understanding of the subject.
The Great Tribulation will be a time of intense persecution, yet it is not the time of God’s wrath.
The church will remain and work to win souls until the very end.
The Two Witnesses
God empowers the saints in miraculous ways during this time.
Revelation 11:3-6
3 And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. 4 These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. 5 And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. 6 These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.
Naturally, the first question we are going to ask is: who are these two witnesses? This is not the first time we have heard about two olive trees and two candlesticks. We can look at previous mentions to discover what this refers to.
Zechariah 4:2-3
2 And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof: 3 And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.
Zechariah 4:12-14
12 And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves? 13 And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord. 14 Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.
We are told these are two anointed ones. But the question remains: who? Scripture answers this in many other passages.
Jeremiah 11:16-17
16 The Lord called thy name, A green olive tree, fair, and of goodly fruit: with the noise of a great tumult he hath kindled fire upon it, and the branches of it are broken. 17 For the Lord of hosts, that planted thee, hath pronounced evil against thee, for the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have done against themselves to provoke me to anger in offering incense unto Baal.
Hosea 14:5-6
5 I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon. 6 His branches shall spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive tree, and his smell as Lebanon.
Romans 11:14-17
14 If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them. 15 For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead? 16 For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches. 17 And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree;
Israel is consistently described as an olive tree in the Scriptures, while the Gentiles are described as a wild olive tree. These are the two olive trees that stand before the Lord of all the earth—two anointed peoples, children of God.
Revelation 1:20
20 The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.
These are also represented by candlesticks. Revelation tells us plainly that the candlesticks represent the churches.
So these two symbols represent the saved of the house of Israel and the saved of the Gentiles. During the final three and a half years of the Tribulation, the saints will prophesy to the world what is coming, and the Spirit of God will empower them to perform miracles, as the church once did in the book of Acts. This is referred to as the “latter rain” in James:
James 5:7-8
7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. 8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
There are, however, a few things that prevent these Scriptures from referring only to two groups of people. If anyone harms them, fire comes out of their mouths and kills their enemies (Revelation 11:5). They continue giving their testimony until the end, when they are killed (Revelation 11:7). Yet the saints are being killed throughout the entire Great Tribulation.
In addition, the text specifically identifies them as two prophets. So how does this make sense?
It makes sense when we recognize that the passage can refer to both two groups of people and two specific individuals at the same time.
There are two people in Scripture who never died: Enoch and Elijah.
Hebrews 11:5
5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
2 Kings 2:11-12
11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12 And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.
Matthew 17:10-13
10 And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? 11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. 12 But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them. 13 Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.
Jesus tells us Elijah will return before the day of the Lord. While He said John the Baptist was Elijah (in a figurative sense), He still maintained that Elijah would come in the future as well.
While Enoch is not explicitly said to return, it can be inferred. However, whether it is Enoch or another, the point remains that there will be two specific prophets who currently stand before the Lord and will come to earth during the Great Tribulation.
They are also among the saints. Therefore, the passage in Revelation can be understood as referring both to the saints as a whole and to two individual people.
These two prophets will be killed, and their bodies will be left unburied. But after three and a half days, they will be raised from the dead.
It is important to understand that this is not yet the resurrection of the saints to meet Jesus in the air. This call is specifically given to these two witnesses.
Revelation 11:12
12 And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies beheld them.
The general resurrection of the saints happens later, after the seven trumpets sound and just before the return of Jesus.
1 Corinthians 15:52
52 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.
The trumpets haven’t even started. That is waiting on the seventh seal to open. So this is not the general resurrection. It is just these two prophets. We have not yet gone over the last trump, but we will do so soon.
When these two prophets are raised, the tribulation ends, as the sixth seal has just been opened. Immediately afterward, the earth shakes, the sun goes black, the moon becomes as blood, and the powers of heaven are shaken. All mankind now knows the Lamb is coming.
The government of the Antichrist falls into chaos now. And his 42 months in which he was able to make war with the saints has come to an end. The time has come for the sixth and then the final seventh seal. I’ll go over what’s next in the next study.
Continue To Unit 7:24 – Revelation’s Sixth Seal: Sudden Judgment and Divine Preservation OR
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