iumphantly in faith he can say, "Who shall
separate us, from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress,
or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?" (Rom.
viii:35). "Rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation," is another
exhortation (Rom. xii:12). To the Corinthians Paul wrote, "I am filled
with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation" (2 Cor.
vii:4). The Thessalonian Christians suffered greatly, but met it all
victoriously so that Paul wrote them, "We ourselves glory in you in the
churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions
and tribulations that ye endure" (1 Thess. i:4). If we today know but
little persecution for Christ's sake, it is because we do not manifest
in our lives separation from the world. "For unto you it is given in
the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer
for His sake" (Phil. i:29). Tribulations, persecutions, sufferings for
Christ's and for righteousness' sake belong to the church. They are
really blessings, for all these things must work together for good to
them that love God.

But there is another tribulation revealed in the Word of God which is
of totally different nature. It is a tribulation which God permits as
a judgment to come upon all the world, a tribulation in which Satan is
concerned, in which he manifests his malice and his wrath. This
tribulation has an altogether punitive character. In different
portions of the Prophets we read of a great time of distress, such as
the sword, famine and pestilence and other tribulations and judgments,
which precede the visible manifestation of the Lord to deliver His
earthly people Israel. This tribulation is always predicted to come
upon Israel and upon the nations of the earth. It is mentioned in the
New Testament, as we shall see directly; but the Old Testament gives us
the full history of these tribulation judgments. The time when this
tribulation takes place is "the end of the age," which, strictly
speaking means the Jewish age. Every student of prophecy knows
something of that all important revelation in Daniel ix, the
seventy-week prophecy.[1]

The last prophetic week of seven years has not yet been. We are still
between the 69th and the 70th week. Those coming last seven years of
that interrupted Jewish age will bring these predicted judgments and
the great tribulation. The last 3-1/2 years (or 1,260 days, 42 months)
are the great tribu