Eschatology: What Does the Bible Teach About the End?

Eschatology: What Does the Bible Teach About the End?

The word eschatology comes from the Greek ἔσχατος (eschatos), meaning last or end. Eschatology is the study of the last things—what Scripture reveals about the conclusion of history, the return of Christ, the resurrection, judgment, and the eternal state. This doctrine is not meant to stir speculation or date-setting but to cultivate readiness, holiness, and hope.

Jesus Himself spoke directly about the mystery of the end. In Matthew 24:36 (NASB), He said, “But about that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.” The future belongs to God alone, and human attempts to calculate the end miss the point. Instead, the Bible calls us to live faithfully so that whenever Christ returns, we will be ready.

The apostle Paul offered comfort to believers facing persecution and death. In 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17 (NASB), he wrote, “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who remain, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.” The Greek word Paul uses for Christ’s return is παρουσία (parousia), meaning coming or arrival, emphasizing the personal and certain re-appearance of Jesus.

Eschatology embraces the return of Christ, the resurrection of both righteous and unrighteous (John 5:28–29, NASB), the final judgment where books will be opened (Revelation 20:12, NASB), and the renewal of creation where God declares, “Behold, I am making all things new” (Revelation 21:5, NASB). Taken together, these passages remind us that the last word of history belongs not to man, nor to chaos, but to Jesus Christ.