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Ask FGBC #28: What is "The day of the LORD?"

Jim Butler · 2024-11-24 · 296 words · 2 min

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Summary

Qa

The 'day of the Lord' throughout Scripture denotes God's visitation in judgment, with multiple historical fulfillments that typify the final eschatological day when Christ returns to judge the living and the dead.

The phrase 'the day of the Lord' refers to God's visitation in judgment, a theme running from the Old Testament prophets through the New Testament's eschatological texts. Multiple historical fulfillments — the fall of the Northern Kingdom to Assyria in 722 BC, the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC, and the AD 70 destruction — function as types pointing forward to the final day when God judges the living and the dead. First Thessalonians 5 and 2 Peter 3 ground the ultimate fulfillment: Christ's return, unexpected as a thief in the night, bringing final judgment upon all.

Key quotes

The day of the Lord refers to the day of the Lord's visitation in judgment.
The Northern Kingdom was dispossessed in 722 BC by Assyria. That was the day of the Lord for them.
1 Thessalonians 5 and 2 Peter 3 do speak to that final day when God will come again and he will judge the living and the dead on that day.

Applications

  1. Recognize that history's judgments on covenant-breaking peoples are not merely ancient events but warnings to all who stand under God's covenant obligations.
  2. Be sober about the certainty and unexpected timing of the final day of the Lord, since it will come like a thief in the night.

Questions this sermon answers

What does 'the day of the Lord' mean in the Bible?

It refers to God's visitation in judgment — a concept with multiple historical fulfillments in the Old Testament that all point forward to the final day when God judges the living and the dead.

Is 'the day of the Lord' the same as 'the Lord's Day'?

No. The Lord's Day refers to the first day of the week, the day of Christian worship; the day of the Lord refers specifically to God's coming in judgment.

What are examples of the day of the Lord in the Old Testament?

The fall of the Northern Kingdom to Assyria in 722 BC and the Babylonian exile of Judah in 586 BC are the two primary historical fulfillments, as addressed in prophets such as Amos and Joel.

Does the New Testament speak about the day of the Lord?

Yes — 1 Thessalonians 5 and 2 Peter 3 both speak of the final day of judgment, describing Christ's return as coming unexpectedly like a thief in the night.

Was AD 70 the day of the Lord?

The speaker holds that the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 also constitutes a day of the Lord, representing further judgment on Israel, though it too points forward to the ultimate final judgment.

So this next question was asked in the previous one, but I'll ask it again.

What Is the Day of the Lord

So what does the day of the Lord mean when used in the Bible? It's different than the Lord's day. The day of the Lord refers to the day of the Lord's visitation in judgment. And so there are many days of the Lord in the Old Testament, really kind of two primary ones, but they really are typify and point ahead to the final day of judgment when God comes again.

So you see the day of the Lord certainly in Isaiah 13. I think it's in Joel chapter 2. Amos 5 speaks about it and others, I'm just forgetting some of them, but the New Testament speaks about it, 1 Thessalonians 5 and 2 Peter chapter 3, but

Old Testament Fulfillments

in the Old Testament it had to do with Israel violating the Old Covenant. And so God was gonna visit them in judgment. And so the Northern Kingdom was dispossessed in 722 BC by Assyria. That was the day of the Lord for them.

Certainly with Amos, that's what he's speaking about. And then Joel is definitely speaking about when the South, Jerusalem, Judah is taken in 586 BC and the whole nation is then dispossessed and sent into captivity.

AD 70 and Final Fulfillment

but those all typify, I also think AD 70 is the day of the Lord as well, it's putting judgment on Israel, but 1 Thessalonians 5 and 2 Peter 3 do speak to that final day when God will come again and it'll come like, he'll come like a thief in the night and he will judge the living and the dead on that day, so the day of the Lord is the day of the Lord's visitation in judgment. Okay.

Scripture References

  • Isaiah 13
  • Joel 2
  • Amos 5
  • 1 Thessalonians 5
  • 2 Peter 3

Study notes

Theological terms

  • Day of the Lord×6
  • Old Covenant
  • Typology