Will there be a final sign before Armageddon? For Jehovah’s Witnesses, the answer is yes—they believe there will be a final sign. But they are not alone in that expectation. Seventh-day Adventists, along with many Evangelical and Pentecostal churches, also teach that one last, unmistakable sign will appear—and then, suddenly, boom! Out of nowhere, the great war of God the Almighty will erupt.
The passage of Scripture that leads these religious groups to think this way is found in Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians. The key verses are these:
Now as for the times and the seasons, brothers, you need nothing to be written to you. For you yourselves know very well that Jehovah’s day is coming exactly as a thief in the night. Whenever it is that they are saying, “Peace and security!” then sudden destruction is to be instantly on them, just like birth pains on a pregnant woman, and they will by no means escape. (1 Thessalonians 5:1-3)
Here are a couple of references to see how Jehovah’s Witnesses interpret these words of Paul.
Think about these earthshaking events that the Bible foretells. First, the nations will proclaim “peace and security!” (1 Thess. 5:2, 3) “Instantly,” the great tribulation will begin when the nations attack all false religion. (Rev. 17:16) (w23 October p. 21 par. 10)
The final talk, delivered by Anthony Morris of the Governing Body, was entitled “What Are We Waiting For?” With urgency and fatherly warmth, Brother Morris reminded the audience of prophetic developments yet ahead of us, events that all faithful ones eagerly await. These include the cry of “Peace and security!” and the destruction of false religion. (1 Thess. 5:2, 3; Rev. 17:15-17) (w11 8/15 p. 21)
This belief—that there will be a great, worldwide proclamation of “peace and security”—comes from the way the New World Translation renders Paul’s words. It states that “Jehovah’s day is coming as a thief in the night.”
But what exactly is Jehovah’s Day, and when does it occur?
There is another book of the Bible that uses the same expression, “Jehovah’s Day,” and also speaks of “coming as a thief.” That book is the Revelation given to John:
“ for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty. (“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.”) And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon. (Revelation 16:14-16)
Here’s the problem: Paul never uses the phrase “Jehovah’s Day.” What Paul actually writes in Greek is ἡμέρα Κυρίου (hēmera Kyriou [hay-MARE-ra KEE-ree-oo])—which means “the day of the Lord” or “the Lord’s day.”
The Watchtower Society’s translators inserted the name Jehovah where it does not appear in the original manuscripts, thereby altering the meaning and applying Paul’s words to the modern era.
But do we really believe that Paul was predicting something that would happen two thousand years in the future—long after every first-century Christian had died?
The Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses has an agenda. Since the days of J. F. Rutherford, their goal has been to interpret the words of Jesus and the apostles in a way that supports their doctrine—that the “last days” began in 1914 and that the end is always just around the corner.
They have kept Jehovah’s Witnesses in a constant state of anxious expectation through their “telescoping generation” teaching—a doctrine they eventually had to abandon. Yet, unwilling to let their creation die, they revived it in true Frankenstein fashion, re-stitching it into today’s bizarre “overlapping generation” monstrosity.
We, however, are not bound to any religious agenda. We have no desire to twist Scripture to fit our own ideas or expectations. Our goal is to let God’s Word speak for itself—exegetically, not dogmatically.
To do that, we begin by examining the immediate context. Paul writes: “Now as for the times and the seasons, brothers, you need nothing to be written to you.” (1 Thessanlonians 5:1)
That would be like me saying to my fellow Canadians, “I don’t need to tell you that autumn is coming—you already know the seasons.” A Canadian sees the leaves turning colour, the days growing shorter, and the temperature dropping, and he knows that winter is just around the corner.
But if someone came to Canada from the Amazon rainforest, I would have to explain why the leaves change, why the air grows cold, and why the daylight fades earlier each day.
So why didn’t Paul need to explain the times and seasons to the Thessalonians? Could it be because they were already familiar with Jesus’ own words about the signs marking the approach of destruction? Surely they had heard of the warnings their Lord had given.
“Now learn this illustration from the fig tree: Just as soon as its young branch grows tender and sprouts its leaves, you know that summer is near. Likewise also you, when you see all these things, know that he is near at the doors. Truly I say to you that this generation will by no means pass away until all these things happen. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will by no means pass away.” (Matthew 24:32-35)
It is noteworthy that the season Jesus chose for his illustration was summer.
The end of the Jewish system did not arrive suddenly or without warning, as if out of a clear blue sky. About sixteen years before the first Roman siege in 66 CE, heavy taxation and widespread corruption had already stirred a growing wave of Jewish nationalism and resistance.
Then, in the spring of 66 CE, Gessius Florus, the Roman procurator of Judea, seized seventeen silver talents from the Temple treasury. Outraged, the Jews publicly mocked him for this act. In retaliation, Florus sent Roman troops into Jerusalem, where they massacred thousands.
That summer, the Jewish zealots struck back. They seized control of Jerusalem, expelled the Roman garrison, and boldly declared independence from Rome.
When Paul wrote to the Thessalonians that they did not need anything written to them about “times and seasons,” it was because they already knew what Jesus had told his followers on that very subject. There is no reason to think Paul was speaking of events two thousand years in the future.
Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians is generally considered his earliest writing, composed around 50 CE. The events he described align perfectly with what later befell the Christians in Jerusalem sixteen years afterward, in 66 CE.
The next part of the prophecy reads:
“For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” (1 Thessalonians 5:2 ESV)
This is 1 common element between the Lord’s day which occurred in the 1st century against Israel, specifically Jerusalem and the temple and Jehovah's day when the nations are gathered to the place that is in Hebrew called Armageddon. But we do well to ask ourselves exactly why did Jesus select this particular analogy. How does a thief in the night operate? To put it another way, when do you become aware that you have been robbed by a thief in the night? You're not aware of it until the next morning when you get up and see that your possessions are gone. By that time, the thief is long gone. So to put it another way, the thief comes does his work, then goes, and everyone who was sleeping is unaware of the fact they've been robbed until much later.
Let us keep that in mind as we read verse 3:
“Whenever it is that they are saying, “Peace and security!” then sudden destruction is to be instantly on them, just like birth pains on a pregnant woman, and they will by no means escape.” (1 Thessalonians 5:3 NWT)
In the autumn of 66 CE, the Roman governor Cestius Gallus laid siege to Jerusalem in response to the Jewish revolt. Josephus records that the Romans advanced deep into the city, set fire to the outer structures, and even reached the northern wall of the Temple—but then, quite unexpectedly and inexplicably, they withdrew. (Jewish War 2.19.6 [sections 539–555])
After the Roman retreat—which quickly turned into a rout—the Jewish rebels saw this as a miraculous deliverance. They celebrated the “peace” they believed God had granted them by driving away their enemies. Josephus writes that the city was filled with jubilation; sacrifices of thanksgiving were offered, and the zealot leaders proclaimed this as proof that God himself would protect them from Rome.
Now imagine you are a Jewish Christian living in Jerusalem at that moment. Do you join in the festivities, or do you recognize the cry of “peace and security” as an omen of impending destruction? It would have taken faith to see it for what it was.
Then you would recall Paul’s words that followed his reference to “sudden destruction.” He said it would come “like birth pains upon a pregnant woman.” No expectant mother is surprised by the fact that she will give birth—she simply does not know exactly when. In the same way, Jesus’ prophecy of Jerusalem’s destruction was a certainty. The only question was when it would come.
And so Paul follows up with an extended warning:
“But you aren’t in the dark about these things, dear brothers and sisters, and you won’t be surprised when the day of the Lord comes like a thief. For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night. So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded. Night is the time when people sleep and drinkers get drunk. But let us who live in the light be clearheaded, protected by the armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation.” (1 Thessalonians 5:4-8 NLT)
In real life, we cannot stay awake all the time. We must sleep—and that, of course, gives a thief the opportunity to rob us. But in the spiritual sense, it is different. Paul urges his brothers and sisters to remain spiritually awake—to live in the light of truth, not in the darkness of lies and deception.
Paul’s letter would have circulated among many congregations, not only in the Gentile world but also throughout Judea and Jerusalem. How would it have affected the Jewish Christians living there?
Both Paul, and Jesus in Matthew’s account, refer to recognizing the change of seasons as a sign of impending or approaching destruction. Those first-century Christians would have noticed the growing unrest—the rising tensions that ultimately led to the first Roman siege.
Jesus had said that when they saw Jerusalem surrounded by encamped armies, they should flee the city and Judea as well. But how were they to do that—and when? Jesus had not specified those details in his prophecy in Matthew 24. Jesus would reveal that answer through his Apostle to the nations, Paul. He writes, “For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord…” (1 Thessalonians 4:15). Everything that follows, therefore, does not originate with Paul, but comes by inspiration from Jesus himself.
So, the Christians in Jerusalem would have been watching for the cry of “peace and security”—the sign that it was time to obey Jesus’ command and flee the city. Because they were awake and living in the light, they would recognize that the thief had come. Those who remained in darkness, however, would not perceive the sign. Believing they had achieved peace and safety, they would stay where they were and perish.
Why, though, was this written to the Thessalonians rather than directly to the Christians in Judea? Consider that Paul’s letter was written sixteen years before the first Roman attack—ample time for it to be copied and circulated among both Gentile and Jewish congregations. In other words, it would have been widely known.
Also, there were Jews living throughout the Roman world, Jews who would obey the law to return to Jerusalem for the festivals. Having seen the diaspora of 66, and recognizing the cry of peace and security for what it truly represented, faithful Jewish Christians would not have returned to Jerusalem in the following years. But the rest would. Let’s remember that Jews were scattered throughout the Roman world and were required to travel to Jerusalem for the Passover festival. For Christian Jews not to return to Jerusalem to attend the three required annual festivals would have called for them to have great faith. But that faith would have saved their lives, for in 70 CE, according to Josephus, more than a million Jews—from Egypt, Babylon, Asia Minor, Greece, and Rome—had gathered in Jerusalem for Passover when the Roman army encircled the city.
Thus, the prophecy of peace and security was fulfilled in the first century. There is no need to imagine a secondary fulfillment or a type-and-antitype pattern, for none is expressed in Scripture.
Nevertheless, one element unites the Lord’s Day of the first century with the yet-future battle of the great day of God the Almighty—Armageddon. Both make use of the same analogy: the thief in the night.
How that analogy applies to Armageddon will be the subject of our next video.
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