Once you understand what Jesus said and what comes after it, everything changes.
Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives with His closest friends when He told them what was coming.
And He did not sugarcoat it.
He Said It Plainly
“For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now and never to be equaled again. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.” Matthew 24:21-22 (NIV)
Think about it.
The Holocaust killed six million people.
World War II killed over seventy million.
The Black Death wiped out a third of Europe.
Jesus said what is coming will make all of that look small by comparison.
A period of suffering so severe that if God did not step in and cut it short, every single human being on earth would die.
Daniel Saw It Six Hundred Years Before Jesus Did
Jesus was not the first person to describe this time.
Daniel saw it coming six hundred years earlier when an angel appeared to him and said:
“At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people, everyone whose name is found written in the book, will be delivered.” Daniel 12:1 (NIV)
Worst time in history.
No precedent before it.
No equal after it.
What Revelation Shows Us It Will Actually Look Like
The book of Revelation fills in the details and they are unlike anything the world has ever seen.
Seven seal judgments.
Seven trumpet judgments.
Seven bowl judgments.
Each series more severe than the last.
The bowls alone read like something out of a nightmare.
Painful festering sores break out on everyone who has taken the mark of the beast.
The sea turns to blood like that of a dead person and every living thing in it dies.
Every river and spring on earth turns to blood.
The sun scorches people with unbearable heat.
Total darkness falls and people gnaw their tongues in agony.
And then the seventh bowl.
“From the sky huge hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds, fell on people. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible.” Revelation 16:21 (NIV)
One hundred-pound hailstones.
The largest hailstone ever recorded in the United States weighed just under two pounds.
Joel and Ezekiel Saw the Same Thing
Joel described this same period eight hundred years before Revelation was written.
“A day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness. Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes, such as never was in ancient times nor ever will be in ages to come.” Joel 2:2 (NIV)
And Ezekiel 38 and 39 describe the war that sets the stage for all of it.
A massive military coalition led by a nation from the far north comes against Israel.
Most scholars identify this as Russia leading a coalition that includes Iran, Turkey, and several North African nations.
God personally destroys this coalition on the mountains of Israel.
“I will execute judgment on him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him.” Ezekiel 38:22 (NIV)
Three writers.
Six centuries apart.
All describing the same period in nearly identical terms.
When that many independent sources align on the same event with the same language, it is worth paying close attention.
But Here Is What Jesus Wants
Jesus did not describe the worst time in history because He wanted His people to live through it.
He described it and then the same night He went to His Father and prayed.
Not for Himself.
Not for an escape route before hanging on the cross.
For us.
“Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am.” John 17:24 (NIV)
He wants us with Him.
And Paul confirmed exactly what that means for believers.
“For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 5:9 (NIV)
John Saw Where We Will Be
John was given a vision of heaven before the Tribulation judgments began.
“After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.” Revelation 7:9 (NIV)
A multitude no one could count.
From every nation.
Already in heaven.
Already standing before the throne in white robes.
While the judgments were being poured out on the earth below, John saw the redeemed already gathered with God.
This is what Jesus prayed for the night before He went to the cross.
That we would be with Him where He is.
And John witnessed it with his own eyes.
He Left From the Mount of Olives and He Is Coming Back to It
Jesus ascended to heaven from the Mount of Olives.
The disciples watched as He was taken up and a cloud hid Him from their sight.
Then two angels appeared and said:
“Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” Acts 1:11 (NIV)
The same way.
The same place.
Zechariah wrote this five hundred years before the ascension:
“On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south.” Zechariah 14:4 (NIV)
The moment His feet touch that mountain, it splits in two.
A physical, geographical, documented event tied to a specific location that has a specific name in the Scripture.
Psalm 2:6 records God Himself declaring:
“I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.” Psalm 2:6 (NIV)
The Bible literally calls it Zion.
God calls it Zion.
The return of Jesus is a specific location that exists on a map right now, east of Jerusalem.
And We Are Coming Back With Him
Revelation 19 describes the moment Jesus returns to the earth.
He is riding a white horse.
His eyes are like flames of fire.
On His robe and on His thigh is written King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
And He is not coming alone.
“The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean.” Revelation 19:14 (NIV)
Revelation 19:8 already told us what the fine linen represents.
The righteous acts of God’s holy people.
The same multitude John saw standing before the throne in Revelation 7, already in heaven in white robes, is the same company riding out with Jesus in Revelation 19 when He returns to the Mount of Olives to begin His millennial reign.
We will not be living through the worst time in history.
We will be riding back with the One who ended it.
This Is Why Jesus Told Us
Jesus does not want you suffering through what is coming.
He wants you with Him where He is.
He prayed for it before He went to the cross, and He meant every word.
The time described in these pages of Scripture is not a fairytale written alongside books that actually happened.
Every book of the Bible has been verified, studied, and confirmed.
The Word is the truth and the truth is God who does not lie, who was and is and is to come.
Everything else He said happened.
These events are next.
Look at what is forming right now in real time.
Russia is aligned with Libya, Sudan, Turkey, and Iran in ways that have never existed in history until this generation.
Iran bombed Israel directly in 2024 without going through a proxy for the first time in history.
Israel has discovered natural gas and oil reserves that directly threaten Russia’s energy dominance over Europe.
And Ezekiel 38 describes a nation coming from the far north to take plunder and seize resources from a land that had none and now has plenty.
That nation is aligning right now.
Those allies are forming right now.
That resource threat is real right now.
Earthquakes are increasing.
Nations are rising against nations.
The signs Jesus described are happening faster and closer together with every passing year.
But the detail that should make every person paying attention stop and take notice is this.
The specific coalition of nations described in Ezekiel 38, nations that had no reason to be allied throughout all of human history, are now formally aligned against Israel for the first time ever.
Revelation is not beginning.
It is continuing.
And the One who predicted every word of it, who fulfilled every promise He made the first time He came, is the same One who is not finished.
He said He is coming back.
He said He wants you with Him.
He prayed for you before He died for you.
Before the nails.
Before the cross.
Before any of it.
He had already asked the Father to bring you home.
Everything else He ever said came true.
So will this.
If you’re wondering whether Jesus really was who He claimed to be, that’s the question this entire website explores.
Start at the beginning with, Did Jesus Lie?
More Questions About Jesus
Did Jesus promise He is coming back?
Yes. On the night before His crucifixion, Jesus promised His followers that He was going to prepare a place for us. Because His previous promises and prophecies have consistently been fulfilled, many Christians believe His promise to return should be taken just as seriously. Read more in Did Jesus Promise He Is Coming Back?
Did Jesus fulfill over 300 prophecies?
Many Bible scholars conclude that Jesus fulfilled more than 300 Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah. These include His birth, ministry, miracles, betrayal, crucifixion, resurrection, and many other events recorded centuries before they happened. Explore the evidence in Did Jesus Fulfill Over 300 Prophecies?
Did Jesus predict the destruction of the Temple?
Yes. Nearly forty years before Jerusalem fell in A.D. 70, Jesus foretold that the Temple would be completely destroyed. History records that His prediction was fulfilled exactly as He said. Learn more in Did Jesus Predict the Destruction of the Temple?
Did Jesus fulfill every Old Testament prophecy about the Messiah?
Christians believe Jesus fulfilled every Messianic prophecy related to His first coming. Other prophecies concerning His return and future kingdom are still awaiting fulfillment, which is why many believers continue watching for His second coming. Read more in Did Jesus Fulfill Every Old Testament Prophecy About the Messiah?
Did Jesus promise the Holy Spirit would come?
Yes. Before going to the cross, Jesus promised He would send the Holy Spirit to live within those who believe in Him. That promise was fulfilled at Pentecost and remains one of the defining promises of the Christian faith. Learn more in Did Jesus Promise the Holy Spirit Would Come?
Why does this website ask, “Did Jesus Lie?”
Every article on this website examines a different claim, promise, prophecy, or prediction made by Jesus. Together they answer one central question: Was Jesus telling the truth? If you’re beginning your journey, start with Did Jesus Lie? to see how the evidence fits together.
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