Signs in the Heavens / The Day of the Lord
When Jesus spoke about the shaking of the heavens in Matthew 24:29, He mentioned particularly the sun, moon and stars not giving their lights and also falling out from the sky.
In the 1st sermon by Peter after the ascension of Jesus we read of Peter saying these same words in Acts 2:16-21
Act 2:16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:
Act 2:17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams;
Act 2:18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.
Act 2:19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke;
Act 2:20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.
Act 2:21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’
Peter is telling his audience that these are not my words (v16) but the fulfillment of the words of their prophet Joel in Joel 2:28-32. Peter did not dream it up or imagine these Jewish symbols. He was speaking in their Jewish culture and language that they understood.
To see the Context of how and why Peter talked about these heavenly bodies, we need to understand that prior to his sermon, the Holy Spirit came upon them on the day of Pentecost and filled all of them with visible fire on their heads and the ability to speak in tongues and foreign languages. Those inhabitants and visitors in Jerusalem were amazed at how these 120 disciples were able to speak their mother tongue and describe the mighty works of God and His kingdom. It was within this context that Peter began to tell them about the signs in the heavens, that there will be a great shaking of the heavenlies, and that if they were to put their faith in Jesus Christ, then salvation will come upon them.
Take note that this "salvation" that Peter was talking about was the saving from the shaking of the heavens and the earth. The building up of the signs in the heavens and earth is so that the listeners may be saved from the effects of these shakings. And we shall see later, what is the meaning of these signs and shakings.
In verse 20, Peter says that these signs in the heavens and earth will precede the coming of the "Day of the Lord" and this day will be a great and glorious day. It will be a great and glorious day for those who will be saved but a terrible day of judgement for those not saved.
This "coming of the day of the Lord" or "coming of Jesus" is the same "coming of Jesus" in Matthew 24:3-13, where the disciples asked "when will be the sign of your coming?". And Jesus answered them by saying that when they see all these signs and events take place, they should flee to the mountains of Judea and then they will be saved. Saved from what? Saved from the coming of the "day of the Lord".
Peter, Joel and Jesus were all speaking of the same thing! Joel prophesied that the "day of the Lord" will come, Jesus said these are the signs of the coming of the "day of the Lord", and Peter said the "day of the Lord" is very near.
The "signs of the heavens" were synonymous with the "day of the Lord". Peter was using the same apocalyptic language about the sun, moon and stars not giving their lights (v19-20) and I have shown that this shaking of the heavens and the earth (signs of the heavens) refers to the judgement and shaking upon the people. The audience understood that the shaking of the sun, moon and stars is not a literal description and not meant to be a natural phenomenon but a metaphorical and symbolic in its meaning.
To the Jews, their nation, Temple and the holy city of Jerusalem was their "heavens and the earth". They were the sun, moon and stars. The judgement of God about heavens and earth being shaken, burnt up, falling down, not giving their lights, are all symbolic meanings of the destruction of natural Israel. This is the passing away of the old Israel and its performance based religion of Judaism together with all its practices.
Look at how God and the prophet Isaiah referred to Israel in Isaiah 51:16. This was what the Jewish nation thought of themselves based on their Scriptures. The heavens and earth is Israel, God's people.
Isa 51:16 And I have put my words in your mouth and covered you in the shadow of my hand, establishing the heavens and laying the foundations of the earth, and saying to Zion, ‘You are my people.’
In Acts 2:16-21, Peter, after the filling of the Holy Spirit, said that the signs in the heavens (the sun, moon and stars stop their lights) and signs on earth with blood, fire and smoke (the destruction of Jerusalem), will be just before the coming of the "day of the Lord".
Now let's look in depth about this phrase the "day of the Lord" in Acts 2:20. It is not a future "day of the coming of Jesus" but it is a past event that happened in AD70. It indicates the arrival of judgement.
Just the phrase alone the "day of the Lord" is a reference to the "judgement of God", so the coming of the "day of the Lord" is the coming of the "judgement of God".
Let us see how this is used in the Old Testament:
In Isaiah 13:6,9-10 we read about the prophecy of God's judgement against Babylon.
Isa 13:6 Wail, for the day of the LORD is near; as destruction from the Almighty it will come!
Isa 13:9 Behold, the day of the LORD comes, cruel, with wrath and fierce anger, to make the land a desolation and to destroy its sinners from it.
Isa 13:10 For the stars of the heavens and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be dark at its rising, and the moon will not shed its light.
In Isa 34:8 we read of "the day of the Lord's vengeance" speaking about the judgement of God against Idumea (v5) and Bozrah (v6) and it happened just the way Isaiah prophesied.
Isa 34:8 For the LORD has a day of vengeance, a year of recompense for the cause of Zion.
In Ezekiel 30:2,3 the "day of the Lord" is considered a doom day for Egypt.
Eze 30:2 Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: “Wail, Alas for the day!"
Eze 30:3 For the day is near, the day of the LORD is near; it will be a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations.
In Joel 1:15 the "day of the Lord" is near meaning the destruction of God on Israel is near.
Joe 1:15 Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD is near, and as destruction from the Almighty it comes.
In Joel 2:1 the "day of the Lord" is coming meaning that the alarm must be sounded for the judgement of God and the people will tremble.
Joe 2:1 Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near,
In Joel 3:14,15 the "day of the Lord" is near with the sun, moon and stars darkened showing that judgement of God is on the nations.
Joe 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
Joe 3:15 The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.
In Zeph 1:7,14 we read of the "day of the Lord" is coming to mean that the judgement of God on Jerusalem is coming and it will be a day of wrath.
Zep 1:7 Be silent before the Lord GOD! For the day of the LORD is near; the LORD has prepared a sacrifice and consecrated his guests.
Zep 1:14 The great day of the LORD is near, near and hastening fast; the sound of the day of the LORD is bitter; the mighty man cries aloud there.
In Zech 14:1 the coming of the "day of the Lord" is when God brings all the nations to battle against Jerusalem.
Zec 14:1 Behold, a day is coming for the LORD, when the spoil taken from you will be divided in your midst.
In Jeremiah 46:10 the "day of the Lord" is the day of vengeance by God on His enemies.
Jer 46:10 That day is the day of the Lord GOD of hosts, a day of vengeance, to avenge himself on his foes.
In Amos 5:18,20 the "day of the Lord" is a day of darkness and gloom.
Amo 5:18 Woe to you who desire the day of the LORD! Why would you have the day of the LORD? It is darkness, and not light,
Amo 5:20 Is not the day of the LORD darkness, and not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?
From the above, you can read from the Scriptures what the "day of the Lord" means.
Let us look at an extra-biblical source on the meaning of the "day of the Lord".
CD Alexander, a bible scholar wrote on his commentary on Joel 2:
[ an adequate study of prophecy would soon teach that the figures used in this prophecy, signs in heaven and earth, the darkening of the sun and the moon, blood, fire and vapor of smoke have nothing to do with the end of the world but with the end of the Old Covenant and its earthly administration in the Jewish state. The same figures are frequently used in the Old Testament to denote the removal or the overthrow of kingdoms, powers and ordinances. See Isaiah 13, for example as those that were used to overthrow a Babylonian kingdom.
Peter's quotation was a warning to the Jewish people of his own day, that the time of the removal of their order had come. Their kingdom and state were about to go down in blood. Their sun was about to set as it took place in AD70 when nation and Temple was destroyed by the Romans. ]
Look into Luke 21 in the New Testament which is a parallel passage to Matthew 24.
Luke 21:22 states that the "day of the Lord" is also called the "day of vengeance". All these signs mentioned before this verse are the signs of the coming of the "days of vengeance" and all of them are going to be fulfilled.
Luk 21:22 for these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written.
After those days in Luke 21:22, there is nothing left to be fulfilled about the "days of vengeance" in the future. All of them have been fulfilled according to Jesus.
Question: Were the early church expecting any literal signs in the heavens?
Answer: Yes, there were some written in non-biblical records and in historical writings. Luke 21:25-26 says there will be some signs IN the sun, moon and stars and these will cause the sea and the waves to create loud sounds. It does not say anything about the sun, moon and stars falling to the earth (symbolic meaning), but it says the signs will be IN the sun, moon and stars.
Luk 21:25 And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves,
Luk 21:26 people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
Let us see some historical writings of FW Farrar in his book "The early days of Christianity" in 1886. On page 416 it says:
[ In Jerusalem, men told how at the Passover of AD65, a mysterious light had gleamed for 3 hours at midnight in the holiest place. How the enormous gates of brass which required the exertions of 20 men to move, had opened of themselves and could not be closed. How at Pentecost, priests had heard sounds as of departing deities who said to each other "Let us depart from here". ]
According to Flavius Josephus, a Roman historian of the 1st Century, who was an eye-witness to the events happening at Jerusalem, wrote in his book "War of the Jews. Vol. 1"
[ While they did not attempt nor give credit to the signs that were so evident, and did so plainly foretell their future desolation but like men infatuated without either eyes to see or minds to consider, did not regard the denunciations that God made to them.
Thus there was a star resembling a sword which stood over the city and a comet that continued a whole year. Thus also before the Jewish rebellion and before those commotions which preceded the war when the people were coming in great crowds to the feast of unleavened bread on the 8th day of the month of Nisan (Xanthicus), at the ninth hour of the night. So great a light shone around the altar and the holy house that it appeared to be bright daytime which light lasted for half an hour. This light seemed to be a good sign to the unskilled but was so interpreted by the sacred scribes as to portend those events that followed immediately upon it.
At the same festival also, a heifer as she was led by the high priest to be sacrificed brought forth a lamb in the middle of the Temple. Moreover the Eastern Gate of the Inner Court of the Temple, which was made of brass and vastly heavy and had been with difficulty shut by 20 men, and rested upon bases armed with iron and had bolts fastened very deep into the firm floor which was there made of one entire stone, was seen to be opened of its own accord on the 6th hour of the night. Now those who kept watch in the Temple came here upon running to the captain of the Temple and told him of it, who then came up thither and not without great difficulty was able to shut the gate again.
But the men of learning understood it. That the security of their holy house was dissolved of its own accord. And that the gate was opened for the advantage of their enemies. So they publicly declared that this signal foreshadowed the desolation that was coming upon them.
Besides these, a few days after the feast on the 21st day of the month of Iyar, a certain prodigious and incredible phenomenon appeared. I suppose the account of it would seemed to be a fable were it not related by those that saw it and were not the events that followed it of so considerable in nature as to deserve such signals.
For before sunset, chariots and troops of soldiers in their armor were sen running about among the clouds and surrounding the city. Moreover at the feast which we call Pentecost, as the priests were going by night into the Inner Court of the Temple, as their custom was to perform their sacred ministrations, they said that in the first place, they felt a quaking and they heard a great noise and after that they heard a sound as of a great multitude saying "Let us remove hence". ]
Josephus said it sounds like fable. You can believe it or not but when you read the writings of these historians, it is indeed an incredible account of the signs and wonders in the heavens that cannot be just simply explained away. Furthermore these are eye-witnesses accounts.
See a write up on the "day of the Lord" :
Note: The New Testament calls the "day of the Lord" by other terms as well such as "days of wrath", "days of vengeance", "day of visitation", "great day of Almighty God", "last days (of Moses Old Covenant)", "day of our Lord Jesus Christ", "day of God". And that this day will come suddenly like a thief in the night (1 The 5:2; 2 Pet 3:10).
We conclude by seeing how did the prophet Zephaniah describe this "day of the Lord".
According to Zephaniah 1:14-16, the "day of the Lord" is also called:
- that day will be a day of wrath
- a day of distress and anguish
- a day of trouble and ruin
- a day of darkness and gloom
- a day of clouds and blackness
- a day of trumpet and battle cry.
