Though it might seem that all the events of His return (twelve events) will take a good bit of time, I have an idea that it will take a very short time. Armageddon itself, from the gathering of the armies of the world (in the sixth seal), to the great earthquake, the fall of Babylon, and of Jerusalem (the seventh seal), I think will take up to a year. But I really don’t think that the events of His coming will take much more than three or four days.

So let us set it up. For some time before His coming (for many months) the armies of the world, and primarily the armies of the beast, have been battling against each other for power. And their main goal will be to capture and plunder Jerusalem. I am sure that seeing Christ will be the last thing on their minds; and His appearing will change everything.

We will take a look now at all the events of His return in chronological order as I see it.

The First Seven Chronological Events of Christ’s Return

1. He will come on a day that is dark and when the power of the heavens are shaking (Matt. 24:29). It will be at a time when there is little hope for the world and for Israel.

2. Heaven opens (Rev. 19:11). All at once there will be a parting of the dark clouds and the darkness, so that all the world will see Him and His glorious light.

3. Suddenly, He appears in the sky and sitting on a white horse; and is coming on the clouds of heaven (Matt. 24:30; 26:64; Rev. 1:7; 19:11).

4. And the armies in heaven (the angels) and the holy ones (the redeemed) will be following Him on white horses (Rev. 19:14; Zech. 14:5-6).

5. Every eye will see Him (Matt. 24:30; Rev. 1:7). Everyone in the world will see Him. How this is possible I don’t know. It will either be by some miracle or through the internet or TV cameras.

6. All the tribes of the earth will mourn Matt. 24:30; Rev. 1:7). All the tribes of the earth means every person on earth. Apparently, they will feel the guilt of their sins and fear of punishment, but they all will not genuinely repent of their sins. Some, I think, will even blaspheme God as they did previously because of the severity of the plagues (Rev. 16:21).

7. Those who are of the house of David will mourn (Zach. 12:10). This mourning is a genuine mourning of repentance, which is poured out by God as a gift to them. It will come to them because they will look to Jesus, the One whom they rejected and crucified; and they will be truly sorry. Zechariah 12:10-14 prophecies this mourning, which will result in their salvation.

“I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn. 11 “In that day there will be great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the plain of Megiddo. 12 “The land will mourn, every family by itself; the family of the house of David by itself and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself and their wives by themselves; 13 the family of the house of Levi by itself and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself and their wives by themselves; 14 all the families that remain, every family by itself and their wives by themselves.