Day of the Lord

The day of the Lord as a day of judgment

Of universal judgment

Isaiah 24:21–22 NRSV

21 On that day the Lord will punish the host of heaven in heaven, and on earth the kings of the earth. 22 They will be gathered together like prisoners in a pit; they will be shut up in a prison, and after many days they will be punished.

See also Zep 1:14–18

Of judgment on the nations

Is 13:9–11; Je 46:10

See also Job 20:28–29; Is 13:4–6 God’s judgment on Babylon

God’s judgment on Egypt:

Is 19:16–17; Eze 30:3–4

Is 27:1; Joe 3:12–14; Ob 15 God’s judgment on Edom; Zep 3:8; Ro 2:16; Re 6:15–17

Of judgment on faithless Israel

Amos 5:18–20 NRSV

18 Alas for you who desire the day of the Lord! Why do you want the day of the Lord? It is darkness, not light; 19 as if someone fled from a lion, and was met by a bear; or went into the house and rested a hand against the wall, and was bitten by a snake. 20 Is not the day of the Lord darkness, not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?

See also Is 2:12; Joe 1:15; Joe 2:1–2; Mt 7:22–23; Jn 12:48; Ro 2:5

The day of the Lord as a day of hope

A day of restoration for God’s people

Jeremiah 30:7–8 NRSV

7 Alas! that day is so great there is none like it; it is a time of distress for Jacob; yet he shall be rescued from it. 8 On that day, says the Lord of hosts, I will break the yoke from off his neck, and I will burst his bonds, and strangers shall no more make a servant of him.

See also Joe 2:23–28

God will gather his people

Is 11:11; Is 27:12–13; Mic 4:6–7; Mt 24:30–31

God will save his people

Zephaniah 3:14–20 NRSV

14 Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem! 15 The Lord has taken away the judgments against you, he has turned away your enemies. The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall fear disaster no more. 16 On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands grow weak. 17 The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; he will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing 18 as on a day of festival. I will remove disaster from you, so that you will not bear reproach for it. 19 I will deal with all your oppressors at that time. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth. 20 At that time I will bring you home, at the time when I gather you; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes, says the Lord.

See also Is 4:5–6; Is 26:1; Joe 2:32; Joe 3:16–18; Ob 17; Zec 9:16–17

God will purify his people

Is 4:3–4; Zep 3:11–13; Zec 14:20–21; Mal 4:1–2

God will exalt his people

Ob 21; Mic 4:8; Mic 5:8–9; Re 22:5

God will complete his saving work

Php 1:6 The “day of Christ Jesus” is the NT equivalent to the “day of the Lord” which refers to Jesus Christ’s second coming.

See also Da 12:1–2; Jn 6:40; Jn 11:24; 1 Co 1:8; 2 Ti 1:12; 2 Ti 4:8

The siege and deliverance of Jerusalem on the day of the Lord

Nations will gather against Jerusalem

Eze 38:14–16; Zec 14:2; Lk 21:20; Re 20:8–9

The Lord will fight for Jerusalem

Eze 38:18–23; Zec 12:2–5; Zec 14:3–5; Zec 14:12–13

The establishment of God’s kingdom on the day of the Lord

God’s kingdom will be universal and everlasting

Zechariah 14:9 NRSV

9 And the Lord will become king over all the earth; on that day the Lord will be one and his name one.

See also Da 2:44; Da 7:13–14; Re 11:15

God will be the object of universal worship

Is 19:19–24; Zep 3:9–10; Zec 14:16

God’s rule will be centred on a restored Jerusalem

Is 2:2–4; Zec 2:10–12; Re 22:3

The fulfilment of Messianic hope on the day of the Lord

Isaiah 4:2 NRSV

2 On that day the branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land shall be the pride and glory of the survivors of Israel.

See also Is 11:10; Je 30:9; Ho 3:5; Am 9:11; Zec 9:9; Zec 12:10

Being prepared for the day of the Lord

The day will come unexpectedly

1 Thessalonians 5:2–3 NRSV

2 For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 When they say, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and there will be no escape!

See also Mt 24:43–44; Mk 13:32; 2 Pe 3:10

The need to be ready for the day

1 Thessalonians 5:4–8 NRSV

4 But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; 5 for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness. 6 So then let us not fall asleep as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober; 7 for those who sleep sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.

See also Eze 13:5; Zep 2:1–3; Mal 4:5; 2 Pe 3:11–12

Signs heralding the day may be discerned

Mt 24:33; 2 Th 2:3

The day of the Lord will be accompanied by signs and great upheavals in nature

Acts 2:19–20 NRSV

19 And I will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist. 20 The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day.

See also Joe 2:30–31; Is 13:9–10; Joe 2:10; Lk 21:11; Lk 21:25–26

Historical events anticipate the day of the Lord

Disaster foreshadows final judgment

Is 5:29–30 Judah invaded by Assyria; Eze 30:10 Egypt defeated by Nebuchadnezzar; Joe 2:2–4 Israel devastated by a locust swarm; Am 5:27 Israel defeated and exiled by Assyria; Mt 24:21 Jerusalem destroyed by the Romans

Return from exile foreshadows final restoration

Is 11:12–14; Hag 2:23; Zec 3:8