“But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up” (2 Peter 3:10).
Considering how often the “day of the Lord” appears within the Scriptures, this term is one that warrants careful consideration. For instance, this phrase appears in both the Old and New Testaments to describe God’s wrath (Isaiah 13:9), God’s judgment (1 Thessalonians 5:3), a time of destruction (Joel 1:15), and a day of reprisal for those who have committed transgressions (Obadiah 1:15).
The prophet Joel depicted the day of the Lord as a “great and very terrible” event (Joel 2:11). Several other Biblical authors shared that characterization, including the Old Testament prophets Ezekiel, Amos, Zephaniah, and Malachi. Those writers associated the “day of the Lord” with corresponding descriptions such as, “doom,” “darkness,” “trouble and distress,” and “dreadful.”
In the New Testament epistle of 1 Thessalonians, the day of the Lord is linked with the events that will accompany Jesus’ return (1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:2). Three commentators add their insights into this important Biblical concept…
“The prominent idea associated with that Day in the Old Testament, and in this passage as well, is that of ‘judgment’ and destruction upon the enemies of God. This stands in striking contrast to the previous passage (4:13–18), where the emphasis was hope and resurrection. The difference of course is one of focus; it depends upon whether believers or unbelievers are in view.” (1)
“In the OT the writers saw two ages, an evil age and a coming age of righteousness, the age of the Spirit. God would intervene in history through His Messiah to set up this new age. This event was known as the ‘Day of the Lord.’ Notice that NT writers attribute this to Christ. His first coming, the Incarnation, was foretold in many OT texts. The Jews did not expect a divine person, just a divine intervention. The two comings of the Messiah, one as suffering servant and savior, one as Judge and Lord, were not obvious to OT people.” (2)
“Christ has already passed through the judgment of the day of the Lord for believers, so they need not fear His return (Heb. 9:27, 28). Unbelievers, however, will feel the wrath of God when the day of the Lord is consummated at the second coming of Christ.” (3)
Portions of this study originally appeared here.
(1) Hindson, E. E., & Kroll, W. M. (Eds.). (1994). KJV Bible Commentary (p. 2480). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
(2) Dr. Bob Utley. Free Bible Commentary, 1 Thessalonians 5:2 Copyright © 2014 Bible Lessons International http://www.freebiblecommentary.org/new_testament_studies/VOL07/VOL07B_05.html
(3) Sproul, R. C. (Ed.). (2015). The Reformation Study Bible: English Standard Version (2015 Edition) (p. 2138). Orlando, FL: Reformation Trust.