Many biblical writers concerned themselves with thoughts about how the present world would come to an end and about how God would take complete control of the universe. These beliefs became important in Jewish writings before the time of Jesus. The author of Daniel talked about God having appointed “the end of time,” when human plans and schemes would be replaced by the purposes of God, and there would be a judgment of the dead (Dan 8:19). Habakkuk wrote that the Lord’s time would come in the future, and those who lived by faith would be acceptable to him (Hab 2:3,4).

These beliefs were also important in early Christian writings. Jesus tells the disciples about the time in the future when a great many terrible things will happen in the world and how the Son of Man (meaning Jesus himself) will return to gather his “chosen ones” from all over the earth (Mark 13). In John, Jesus’ friend Martha speaks to Jesus about her belief that her brother Lazarus would be raised to life “on the last day” (John 11:24). The writer of 2 Timothy warns Christians about the hard times that will come “in the last days” (2 Tim 3:1).

By the first century there were two very important beliefs about the “End Times” or “Last Days.” First, that there would be a final conflict between the powers of good and evil. And second, that God’s people would have to face hard times before the final age comes. These beliefs were influenced by some historical situations. First, the Jews who returned from exile in Babylonia hoped that their kingdom would be renewed and become as powerful as it was in the time of King David. This did not happen, and the people of Judea were ruled by a number of more powerful nations (Persians, and later, Greeks and Romans). The one attempt to start a Jewish kingdom under the leadership of the Maccabees (168–63 B.C.) briefly succeeded but did not last.

Besides being forced to live through a period of political turmoil, the Jews who returned after the exile had become familiar with the religious teachings of the Persians (Zoroastrianism). The Persians taught that evil was not simply the result of human failings and selfishness but was also part of an unchanging battle between good and evil. In addition to this belief (sometimes called dualism), they believed that all the evil that existed in the world was the work of hidden evil powers led by God’s chief opponent. In Hebrew, this leader is called “Satan.” The Persians also believed the good forces would ultimately defeat the forces of evil. This belief is paralleled in later apocalyptic writings found in the Jewish Scriptures (Zech 3:1-12) and is present throughout the New Testament (Mark 1:12,13; 3:22-26; Acts 26:12-18; Eph 6:10-13; Rev 20:1-3).

The Bible also teaches that God’s purposes were revealed to the people of Israel in the Law of Moses. God judged the people according to how they obeyed the Law. Jesus followed God’s purposes by calling the faithful people to obedience. They also believed that God would reward the faithful and punish the wicked. These beliefs are apparent in such Jewish writings as Daniel and in others not included in the Jewish Scriptures, for example, 1 and 2 Enoch and Jubilees. They also appear in the messages of Jesus and Paul, and in nearly all the books of the New Testament, but especially in Revelation.

The book of Revelation speaks of great suffering and turmoil to come, but it ends with the promise that God will make all things new—a new heaven, and a new earth, and an end to the division between them (Rev 21–22):

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The first heaven and the first earth disappeared, and the sea vanished. And I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared and ready, like a bride dressed to meet her husband. I heard a loud voice speaking from the throne: “Now God's home is with people! He will live with them, and they shall be his people. God himself will be with them, and he will be their God. He will wipe away all tears from their eyes. There will be no more death, no more grief or crying or pain. The old things have disappeared.” (Rev 21:1-4, GNT)