Time of Jacob's Trouble

As we look around us, we realize that the times we are living are not like any other before. Could we be nearing "the time of Jacob's trouble."


"The time of Jacob's trouble" is a quote from Jeremiah 30:7 which says, "Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it" (KJV).

In verses 3 & 4 of Jeremiah 30, we find that the Lord is speaking to the prophet and  promises that one day in the future, He will bring both Judah and Israel back to the land that He had promised their forefathers. Verse 5 describes a time of great fear and trembling. Verse 6 describes this time in a way that pictures men going through the pains of childbirth, again indicating a time of fear and pain. But there is hope for Judah and Israel, for the Lord promises He will save Jacob out of this time of great distress (30:7).

In Jeremiah 30:10-11 the Lord says, “‘I will surely save you out of a distant place, your descendants from the land of their exile. Jacob will again have peace and security, and no one will make him afraid. I am with you and will save you,’ declares the LORD.”

The Lord says He will destroy the nations who held Judah and Israel in captivity, but will not destroy Jacob completely. Our Lord describes that time as a time of discipline for Jacob. He says of Jacob, “Though I completely destroy all the nations among which I scatter you, I will not completely destroy you. I will discipline you but only with justice; I will not let you go entirely unpunished.”

It also says "that day is great, so that none is like it.”  This best fits the description of the period of the tribulation. This is an unparalleled time; there will never be another like it. Jeremiah 30:6 depicts a man going through the pains of childbirth. This is paralleled by other passages that liken the tribulation to birth pains.

In Matthew 24:6-8, Jesus stated that the appearance of false christs, wars and rumors of wars, famines, and earthquakes are "the beginning of birth pains." We know this will be during the first half of the tribulation because the appearance of the beast/antichrist occurs at the midpoint of the tribulation (Matthew 24:15; Daniel 9:27; Revelation 13).

Paul also described the tribulation as birth pains in 1 Thessalonians 5:3, "While people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape." This event follows the rapture and the removal of the Church, in 4:13-18. In 5:9, Paul reemphasizes the absence of the Church from this time period by saying, "For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ." The wrath spoken of here is God's judgment on the unbelieving world and His discipline of Israel during the tribulation.

These birth pains are described in detail in Revelation 6-12, birth pains which are the Lord's discipline designed to bring Israel back to Him.

For those who have received Christ as Savior from sin, the time of Jacob's trouble is something for which we should praise the Lord, for it is His demonstrating that He keeps His promises. Just as He has promised us eternal life through Christ our Lord, He also will fulfill His promises of land, seed, and blessing that He made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the form of covenants by giving those things to their physical descendants. But before He fulfills these promises, He will lovingly but firmly discipline the nation so that they return to Him.