What the Church Teaches About the Second Coming
The Second Coming of the Lord is the long-awaited return of the Lord Jesus Christ from Heaven to earth in divine glory and power, which—according to God’s promise—will occur at the end of time.
Below is what Holy Scripture reveals about the Second Coming.
Biblical Teaching About the Second Coming
The Second Coming will take place at the end of world history, when the Lord Jesus Christ will appear in glory with the angels to judge all humanity (Matt. 25:31–33).
In the Old Testament, this event is often referred to as “the Day of the Lord,” a term also used by the apostles (2 Pet. 3:10; 1 Thess. 5:2). In the New Testament, the concept of the Second Coming is closely linked with “the Day of Judgment” (2 Pet. 2:9) and “the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God” (Rom. 2:5). Some exegetes also identify it with the expression “the day of visitation” (1 Pet. 2:12).
The Second Coming will be visible to all people (Matt. 24:30; Rev. 1:7). The Lord will return in the same manner as He ascended into Heaven—in His human body (Acts 1:11).
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Before this event, there will be:
- the worldwide preaching of the Gospel (Matt. 24:14),
- the reign of the Antichrist,
- great wars,
- famine,
- deadly diseases,
- and other calamities (Matt. 24:6–8; 2 Thess. 2:1–9).
Despite the global preaching of the Gospel, true believers will be few, as Christ asked:
“When the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8)
Because lawlessness will increase, “the love of many will grow cold” (Matt. 24:12). False prophets will arise, pretending to be Christ, “and will deceive many” (Matt. 24:11). In the New Testament, the term parousia (coming) is often interchangeable with “the appearing of Jesus Christ” (1 Tim. 6:14; 2 Thess. 1:7; Titus 2:13).
Apostolic Teachings on the Last Times
The apostles give special attention to the times preceding the Second Coming.
St. Paul calls them:
- “the latter times” (1 Tim. 4:1)
- “the last days” (2 Tim. 3:1)
He warns that these days will be marked by a massive falling away from the Christian faith (1 Tim. 4:1):
“For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power.”
(2 Tim. 3:2–5)
This atmosphere—full of false piety, deception, immorality, and wickedness—will prepare the world for the arrival of “the man of sin, the son of perdition,” whose coming, empowered by Satan, “will be with all power, signs, and lying wonders” (2 Thess. 2:3, 9).
St. John calls him the Antichrist (1 John 2:18). Although “the mystery of lawlessness is already at work,” the one who restrains the Antichrist prevents his appearance before the appointed time (2 Thess. 2:6–7).
The rule of the Antichrist will be short-lived. The Lord Jesus will destroy him:
“with the breath of His mouth and with the brightness of His coming”
(2 Thess. 2:8)
The Manner of Christ’s Return
The Coming of Christ will be like lightning:
“For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.”
(Matt. 24:27)
It will be accompanied by heavenly signs:
“The sun will be darkened, the moon will not give its light, the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”
(Matt. 24:29–30)
Many Orthodox commentators understand the sign of the Son of Man to be the Cross of Christ; others consider it a star or the universal resurrection of the dead.
Christ will appear accompanied by angels (Matt. 25:31; cf. Matt. 24:31; Mark 13:27), with the voice of the archangel (1 Thess. 4:16) and the sound of a trumpet—
“the trumpet of God” (1 Thess. 4:16).
Everything will occur:
“in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.”
(1 Cor. 15:52)
The Unexpected Nature of the Second Coming
The Second Coming will be sudden, at a moment when people do not expect it:
“As it was in the days of Noah, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be… they were eating and drinking, marrying… until the day Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away—so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.”
(Matt. 24:37–39)
The exact time:
“no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.”
(Matt. 24:36)
Some interpreters, based on the comparison with a thief (Luke 12:39–40; 2 Pet. 3:10), conclude that it may occur at night. This notion appears also in the parable of the ten virgins, where Christ’s coming is likened to the arrival of the bridegroom:
“At midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’”
(Matt. 25:6)
Christ therefore commanded constant spiritual vigilance (Matt. 24:42; Luke 12:35–38).
Events Connected With the Second Coming
The following events will accompany the Second Coming:
- The Lord will destroy the power of the Antichrist over the nations (2 Thess. 2:8; Rev. 19:20)
- The devil and demons will be cast into eternal fire (Rev. 20:10)
- The dead will rise and the living will be transformed, and the Lord will judge all humanity—the Last Judgment (1 Cor. 15:52; 1 Thess. 4:16; Matt. 25:31–46; Rev. 20:11–15)
- The world will be consumed by fire and transfigured, and the righteous will dwell forever with God (2 Pet. 3:3–13; Rev. 21; Rev. 22)
How Should Orthodox Christians Understand the Expectation of the Second Coming Today?
For the early Christians, the expectation of this event was joyful. The Apostle John exclaims in the Book of Revelation:
“Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” (Rev. 22:20)
And so it should remain for believers at all times, because the Coming of Christ will signify the end of Satan’s power in the world, the cessation of evil, suffering, and calamities, and the opening of the eternal Kingdom of Glory.
In the Lord’s Prayer we say: “Thy Kingdom come.”
This means, among other things, that we:
“…ask God that His Second Coming may come quickly, when the Son of Man will appear in His glory, and the resurrection of the dead and the final judgment will take place; after which the kingdom of this world and the enemy of our souls will be abolished, and the Heavenly Kingdom will come, so that God may be all in all, as the Apostle says (1 Cor. 15:28).”
(Orthodox Confession of Faith, Part 2, Question 15)
Quotes About the Second Coming of Christ
2 Peter 3:9–12
“The Lord is not slow to fulfill His promise as some count slowness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.
Since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,
looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?”
2 Thessalonians 2:1–9
“Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you,
not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.
Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,
who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.
Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?
For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.
And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.
The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders…”
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Saint Porphyrios of Kavsokalyvia
“I do not say that I have seen the Mother of God, that there will be war, or other such things.
I know that the Antichrist will come, that there will be the Second Coming of Christ, but when — I do not know.
Tomorrow? A thousand years from now? I do not know.
Yet this does not trouble me.
Because I know that at the hour of death, for each of us, the Second Coming of the Lord arrives.
And that hour is already very near.”
— St. Porphyrios Kavsokalyvitis
📝 Conclusion
The Second Coming of Christ is not meant to inspire fear but hope. For those who love God, it is the long-awaited moment when evil will cease, death will be destroyed, and the fullness of divine life will be revealed.
Orthodox Christians are called not to speculation, anxiety, or curiosity about dates, but to watchfulness, repentance, and joyful expectation, trusting in the promise:
“Behold, I am coming quickly.” (Rev. 22:12)
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Keywords: second coming of christ, orthodox christianity, last judgment, antichrist, end times signs, biblical prophecy, day of the lord, eschatology, resurrection of the dead, kingdom of god, final judgment, orthodox faith
Tags:
Second Coming, Orthodox Eschatology, End Times, Antichrist, Last Judgment, Bible Prophecy, Christian Theology
