In my last article on this subject, I wrote on the first seven event of His return. Here they are:

1. He will come on a day that is dark and when the power of the heavens are shaking (Matt. 24:29).

2. Heaven opens (Rev. 19:11).

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).

6. All the tribes of the earth will mourn Matt. 24:30; Rev. 1:7).

7. Those who are of the house of David will mourn (Zach. 12:10).

I will write now on the last five events.

8. Jesus will fight for Israel and bring them to safety (Zech. 12:9-9; 14:3-4; Rev. 12:16). Because a remnant of Israel will choose to believe in Him, He will fight for them and bring them to safely. There are two groups of Jews that He will appear to and fight for. First, there are those who earlier fled into the wilderness. And when the Antichrist comes against them, he and his armies will easily be defeated (Rev. 12:16).

A second group will be those who are trapped in Jerusalem after the city is sieged. Jesus saves them by stepping down on the Mount of Olives, causing it to split in the middle, and produces a large valley from east to west. Hence, Jesus will give them this way to escape to safety.

9. Jesus will cast the beast and the false prophet into the lake of fire (Rev. 19:20).

10. Jesus goes out to judge (to kill) all unbelievers. According to Revelation 19:20-21, after He casts the beast and the false prophet into the lake of fire, He then goes to kill the rest with the sword. There are five different references on this point.

Revelation 19:15. “From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations…”

I like what John MacArthur says on this: “That the sword comes out of His mouth indicates that He wins the battle with the power of His word.”4

Revelation 19:15. “He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty.”

This is a vivid picture of judgment. And notice that Jesus is the one who is stomping on the grapes in the great wine press of God.

Revelation 19:17-18, 21. Here an angel summons birds to come to the great supper of God. Many thousands of birds will come and feast on all the dead bodies lying on the battle field.

Revelation 14:14-19. Here is a picture of Christ along with certain angels harvesting the ungodly people of the world with a sharp sickle. The harvest is illustrated first by grain and then by grapes. In both cases the harvest is ripe for judgment and ready to be reaped.

Revelation 14:20. “The wine press was trodden outside the city, and blood came out of the wine press, up to the horses bridle, for a distance of two hundred miles.” John MacArthur comments:

God will determine that this bloodbath will occur outside Jerusalem, as if God wants to protect the city from the carnage all around. Zechariah 14:1-5 makes clear that Jerusalem will be attacked, but will not be destroyed in the end, but spared for the glory of the kingdom, and the believing remnant will be saved…5

11. A description of what happens to those who will go to war against Jerusalem (from Zechariah 14:12-15). From this passage we see three things that will happen to all people that go to war against Jerusalem. These things we may recognize as curses that were promised by God to Abraham in Genesis 12:3: “And I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse.’

The first curse we see is a plague on all the people as well as their animals (vv. 12, 15): “…their flesh will rot while they stand on their feet, and their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongue will rot in their mouth.”

The second thing that will happen is this: “It will come about in that day that a great panic from the LORD will fall on them; and they will seize one another’s hand, and the hand of one will be lifted against the hand of another” (v. 13).

Thirdly, God will energize the Jews who remain in Jerusalem to fight; and they will capture the wealth of the surrounding nations (gold, silver and garments). I take it that this will happen right before they escape to safety through the valley (Zech. 14:4-5).

12. A description of the positive changes made after the Tribulation (Zech. 14:6-11). In these verses God reveals to us that there will be some differences in the earth and in the people—positive differences (We don’t know how wide spread these differences will be, whether it will be only to Israel, or to the entire world. It is my guess that we will see the differences mainly in Israel, but in some cases to the entire world.) Here are five things that will be different.

The lights (vv. 6-7). “In that day there will be no light, the luminaries will dwindle. For it will be a unique day which is known to the LORD, neither day nor night, but it will come about that at evening time there will be light.” 

From these verses it seems that after the Tribulation the Lord will create something new for the earth (for all the earth)—which will endure throughout the millennial kingdom. Here we see that there will be a change in the light. It seems that out present light source, from the sun and moon, will be changed. According to Isaiah 60:19-20, we will see by the light of Christ’s glory; and only He knows the full extent of what it will be like (read Isa. 30:26). 

The water (v. 8). “And in that day living waters will flow out of Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea and the other half toward the western sea; it will be in summer as well as in winter” (Read also Ezek. 47:1-2; Joel 3:18; Jn. 7:38; and Rev. 2 2 :1-2). It will be glorious to drink of the “living water” in that day. The source of it will be from the temple of God in Jerusalem. It will flow all over the land of Israel, and possibly also in all other lands of the world. There will be no more pollution and sickness caused by water. Instead, the water will bring health to all the fish of the sea and to all the plants and fruit trees for a healing. It will be wonderful.

One religion (v. 9). “And the LORD will be king over all the earth; in that day the LORD will be the only one, and His name the only one.” John MacArthur comments:

There will be only one religion in the entire world during the millennial reign of Christ. Ruling with a rod of iron, Christ will have done away with all false religions spawned by Satan. This will be the ultimate fulfillment of the Abrahamic Covenant providing a Jewish people, the nation of Israel, and the land given to Abraham; the Davidic Covenant which promised a king from the tribe of Judah and the line of David; and the New Covenant which held out the hope of spiritual redemption for Jew and Gentile. All of this will be fulfilled in and by the Lord Jesus Christ.6                         

The land (v. 10). “All of the land will be changed into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem; but Jerusalem will rise and remain on its site from Benjamin’s Gates far as the place of the First Gate to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s wine presses.”

The great earthquake (from the seventh bowl) will change not only the land of Israel, but all the earth’s land in preparation for the coming millennial kingdom (Rev. 16:20; Isa 40:4-5).

Security (v. 11). “People will live in it, and there will no longer be a curse, for Jerusalem will dwell in security.”

After the Tribulation is over, and because Jesus has come and is king over all the earth, all people will dwell in security.

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4 John MacArthur, John MacArthur’s notes on Revelation 19:15.

5 Ibid., notes on Revelation 14:20.

6 Ibid., notes on Zechariah 14:9.