The Day of Judgment

(1)  The general idea of the day of judgment produces dread for most people. Indeed, many think of the day of judgment as being "doomsday," confusing and given literal applications to many of the figurative language of the Bible regarding the time of trouble as being the "day of judgment." It is generally believed that the day of judgment refers to a 24-hour day in which, among many fearsome acts, the graves of all who ever lived will be opened and all those thought now to be in heavenly bliss will return to the bodies they had before they died, and those now thought to be a place of horrible torture are also raised and returned to the bodies they had before they died. At that time, according to the way many present the day of judgment, all the acts, good and bad, will be reviewed of each person who has ever lived, and they all will be sent back to where they had been before, the righteous back to heavenly bliss and the rest back to their eternal conscious suffering. The reality is that such a depiction would actually make the day of judgment a farce, and without any real purpose, since, according to this theory, all had already been judged and sentenced to an eternal fate at the moment that they died. The thought of the Judgment Day often causes dread in many, usually because they have been mistaught that it is a 24-hour day, when, amid great convulsions of nature -- literal earthquakes, graves opening, etc. -- Christ calls from heavenly bliss and horrible torture the billions of dead, places them back into the old bodies they had at death, sentences them and then sends them back to where they were before, some to eternal joy in heaven, but the vast majority to eternal torture in place supposedly run by demons. Accordingly, Judgment Day has been termed Doomsday (see dictionary). This view, in effect, makes the Judgment Day quite purposeless -- a farce.

(2) Mankind, however, has already experienced a day of judgment when God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden. Adam could have lived forever here on earth had he obeyed, but the Bible record shows that he failed the test of that judgment, and thus God sentenced him (and all of his descendants) -- not to an eternity of unimaginable conscious suffering, not to an eternity of separation from God, but rather to death -- the cessation of life. That death would have been eternal if God had not provided some means to offset the condemnation -- but the sentence was not eternal torment or eternal separation from God. However, God in his great love caused his Son to be "made flesh," "a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death . . . that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man." -- Genesis 2:17; 3:17-19; Romans 5:6-19; 1 Corinthians 15:21,22; Matthew 20:28; John 1:14; 3:14-18; Hebrews 2:9.

(3) When Jesus was born into this world of mankind, the angels spoke of "good tidings of great joy, which will be to all people." This message was proclaimed by the angel because Jesus came to offer himself to his God as the "ransom for all, to be testified [to all] in due time." This "good tidings" guarantees to "all men" (Acts 17:31) that they will be saved from the condemnation and given an opportunity to live forever (no individual second chance for any of Adam's race). Adam and all of Adam's descendants are thus guaranteed a full, fair opportunity for everlasting life (either in this life or after being awakened from the dead -- John 5:28,29, New American Standard). It is indeed God's will, his determination, that all men are to be saved [from Adamic condemnation; but this does not mean that they will automatically live eternally], and to come to the knowledge of the truth. -- Luke 2:10; 1 Corinthians 15:21,22; 1 Timothy 2:3-6; 4:10.

(4) We should note that the Bible does not always use the word "day" to mean a period of 24 hours; it is often used to refer to periods that are much longer. (Genesis 2:4; Hebrews 3:8,9; Psalm 95:7-10; 2 Corinthians 6:2) It is also used to designate the daylight time which is averaged to about 12 hours. -- John 11:9. Aside from the Bible, one might speak of Luther's "day", referring, not a single 24-hour time period, but to the time period in which Luther lived.

(5) Those who become members of the church -- the called-out assembly -- whose names are enrolled in heaven  (Luke 10:20; Hebrews 12:23) are being judged through a trial of faith in what the Bible refers to as this present evil age (Galatians 1:4; 2 Thessalonians 1:4,5; 1 Peter 4:17), but we read that God "has appointed a day, in which he will judge the world in righteousness" -- "the day of judgment and perdition [destruction] of ungodly men; but . . . do not be ignorant of this one thing, that one day with Jehovah is as a thousand years." -- Acts 17:31; 2 Peter 3:7,8; Psalm 90:4.

(6) Why does the world not believe the Good News in this age? What change is to take place in the age to come regarding this? Today, the world cannot understand the Gospel, because Satan, "the god of this world," blinds the minds of the people. (2 Corinthians 4:4; Revelation 12:9) As a result, darkness covers the earth and "gross darkness the people." However, in the world's great judgment day Satan is thrown into a symbolic abyss, "that he should deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years are ended." -- Isaiah 60:2, Revelation 20:2,3,7.

(7) We read in the Bible that in that coming day (the 1,000 years of Christ's reign), Jesus and the sons of God of his age will judge the world of mankind. And when God's judgments are in the earth, the world will learn righteousness. At that time "the earth will be full of the knowledge of Jehovah, as the waters cover the sea." Then it will be said: "Look, this is our God. We have waited for him, and he will save us . . . . We will be glad and rejoice in his salvation." -- Isaiah 2:2-4; 11:9,10; 25:6-9; 40:5; 52:10: Jeremiah 31:34; Daniel 7:22; Habakkuk 2:14; 1 Corinthians 6:2; Revelation 20:4.

(8) As already indicated, the judgment of that age is not just pronouncing a sentence, just in that day of judgment, the world will be taught Jehovah's ways. The word judge as used in the Scriptures does not mean merely to sentence, but includes -1- instruction (Psalm 19:7-11; 25:8,9: 106:3; 119:108; Isaiah 33:5; 56:1; 59:4,8-15; Ezekiel 22:2; Matthew 12:18-20; 23:23; Colossians 2:16), -2- testing (Psalm 26:1-3, compare 139:23,24; Jeremiah 11:20, compare 20:12; 2 Thessalonians 1:4,5), -3- chastisement for correction (Isaiah 26:9; 1 Corinthians 11:31,32 -- compare Luke 12:47,48; Hebrews 12:5-11; Revelation 3:19), and -4- passing a sentence. -- Matthew 7:1,2; John 7:24; Deuteronomy 1:16; Psalm 17:2.

(9) The scriptures reveal that Jesus "will judge (by these four processes) the living and the dead at (during) his appearing and his kingdom." "He must reign [in his thousand-year reign] until he has put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death." -- 2 Timothy 4:1; 1 Corinthians 15:24-26; Psalm 72:1-4; Isaiah 11:1-6; 32:1; Jeremiah 23:5,6; Hosea 13:14; Revelation 20:11-15.

(10) As we have already indicated, the saints [dedicated ones] will rule with Jesus over the earth in 1,000-year judgment day and assist in judging the world, offering to them "the water of life freely." -- Daniel 7:22,27; 1 Corinthians 6:2; Obadiah 1:21; Matthew 19:28; Luke 22:29,30; Romans 8:16-21; 2 Timothy 2:11,12; Revelation 3:21; 5:9,10; 20:4,6; 22:17.

(11) Jehovah has given a promise, backed up by his oath, that Abraham's seed, that is, Christ and all the "sons of God" of this age, will bless "all the families of the earth." This blessing is to come to the world during the 1,000-year reign. -- Genesis 12:3; 22:16-18; Galatians 3:7-9,16,29; Hebrews 6:13-20; Acts 3:19-25.

(12) The blessings of that age to come are to both the dead as well as the living -- the dead will be awakened from their "sleep" in death (Psalm 6:5; 146:4; Daniel 12:2; John 5:28,29 NASV; 11:11-14; 1 Thessalonians 4:14; 2 Peter 3:4) and will then be given an exact, full knowledge of the truth and a full opportunity to live eternally, without the blinding hindrances of Satan and his demons.

(13) The that time of blessing, "God will wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there will be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither will there be any more pain; for the former things [things of Satan's reign, including the curse of sin and death] are passed away." -- Revelation 21:1-4; 22:1-3; Isaiah 35:10; 65:17-25.

(14) It is in that coming age that "the Son of man will come in his glory . . . [and] then he will sit on the throne of his glory: and all nations [the unbelieving heathen of this age - Psalm 46:10; 67; 72:1,11,17; 96:3,10; Isaiah 2:2-4; Ezekiel 37:28; 38:16; 39:7] will be gathered [from hades and death -- Revelation 20:12,13] before him. He will separate them [under the testings of that great judgment day] one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats." Those whom he finds to be righteous, are pictured as sheep (those who become sheep in the next age, not Christ's sheep of this present age -- John 10:14-15), and the sheep of that age will be given everlasting life and will "inherit the kingdom"  -- the dominion of the earth (the meek will inherit it -- Matthew 5:5; Hebrews 2:5-8), whereas those who will not have proved worthy, pictured as goats, will "go away into everlasting punishment" in the second death, never to live again. "All the wicked he will destroy." -- Matthew 25:31-46; Psalm 145:20; Revelation 20:9,15; 21:8.

(15) The destruction of the wicked is symbolized by their being cast into the "lake of fire," "which is the second death," into "everlasting fire [fire is an apt symbol, not of preservation, but of destruction], prepared for the devil [who is to be destroyed, annihilated -- Hebrews 2:14; Ezekiel 28:19] and his angels"; the wicked will be no more. -- Revelation 20:14,15; 21:8; Matthew 25:41; Psalm 37:10,20 .

(18) The scriptures tell us that  "the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ." And we read that "The soul that is sinning, it will die." Thus, eventually, after having received the blessings of that day of judgment, "every soul who will not hear [obey] that prophet [Christ] will be destroyed from among the people." -- Romans 6:21,23; John 3:36; 1 John 5:12; Psalm 37:38; Ezekiel 18:4,20; Acts 3:19-23.

(19) In view of all presented from the Bible above, we conclude that the Bible shows that the world's judgment day is not Doomsday, but Salvation Day, when God's kingdom will rule over the earth. So we should rejoice greatly as we see it approaching! "Let the earth be glad . . . for he [Jehovah] comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the people with truth." "All the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God," and will fear [reverence] Him. -- Psalm 96; 98; 67; Isaiah 26:9; Numbers 14:21.

Paragraphs are numbered as assistance for reference when used as an aid in group Bible study.

We recommend that one follow-up the study of the above with our study "Mankind's Course to the Day of Judgment." This examines the above and many more scriptures in greater detail; it also answers many questions often asked related to the day of judgment. The online copy is available at:
https://prophecy-rlbible.blogspot.com/2016/11/course.html