Then Shall All The Tribes Of The Earth Mourn

Let's explore what Jesus meant when He said "then shall all the tribes  of  the earth mourn."

Bible verse "then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn"

Mat 24:29

Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:


Mat 24:30
And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

The phrase "then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn" is sandwiched between two prophetic layers.

When Jesus said that all the tribes of the earth shall mourn, He sandwiched it between two other phrases:

• the appearance of the sign of the son of man
• and the coming of the son of man in the clouds of heaven.

Let's read the Matthew 24: 29 & 30 text again: 

Immediately after the tribulation of those  days shall the sun be darkened and the moon shall not give her light and the stars shall fall from heaven and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken 

and then shall appear the sign of the Son of  Man in heaven and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn and they shall see  the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 

To understand the prophecy, we need to remember the context is in relation to the destruction of the temple and the destruction of Jerusalem.  

Meaning of the word 'tribes"

Phylē  is the Greek word for "tribes" (G5443). It refers to the tribes of Israel. Jacob or Israel had twelve sons. The descendants of each son became part of a tribe or state.

Scriptures referring to tribes as the twelve tribes/tribes of Israel

Mat 19:28

And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes G5443 of Israel.

Luk 22:30
That ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes G5443 of Israel.

Jas 1:1
James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes G5443 which are scattered abroad, greeting.

Rev 7:4
And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes G5443 of the children of Israel.

Scriptures in which the tribes were either named or referred to indirectly

Luk 2:36
And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe G5443 of Aser: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity;

Act 13:21
And afterward they desired a king: and God gave unto them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe G5443 of Benjamin, by the space of forty years.

Rom 11:1
I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe G5443 of Benjamin.

Phl 3:5
Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe G5443 of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;

Heb 7:13
For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe, G5443 of which no man gave attendance at the altar.

Heb 7:14
For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe G5443 Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood.

Rev 5:5
And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe G5443 of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.

Rev 7:5
Of the tribe G5443 of Juda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe G5443 of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe G5443 of Gad were sealed twelve thousand.

Rev 7:6
Of the tribe G5443 of Aser were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe G5443 of Nepthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe G5443 of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand.

Rev 7:7
Of the tribe G5443 of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe G5443 of Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe G5443 of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand.

Rev 7:8
Of the tribe G5443 of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe G5443 of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe G5443 of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand.

Rev 21:12
And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes G5443 of the children of Israel:

The word kindred (s) is also used as a synonym for tribes

Revelation 5: 9 refers to the sealed of Israel. They had been scattered (by Nebuchadnezzar and Titus) abroad to different nations and spoke various languages as we saw in Acts 2. 

Rev 5:9 

And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, G5443 and tongue, and people, and nation;

Let's cross reference Jesus' prophecy with Revelation 1:7

Mat 24:30
And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes (g5443) of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

Rev 1:7
Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds (g5443) of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

Fulfillment of the prophecy - tribes mourning

The prophecy about tribes mourning was fulfilled in AD66 with the live vision of chariots in conflict in the sky over the entire nation. The nation was in distress. Every eye saw the vision and the nation mourned during the war.

Future fulfillment of the tribes of the earth mourning

Now Revelation 1: 7 builds upon Jesus' prophecy by adding another clue. That is, those who pierced Him would see Him live. 

Did Jesus appear in person in AD66? 

No. He did not. Therefore Revelation 1: 7 is about a future event. 

John is definitely speaking about a future event when Jesus will put in a physcal appearance. The Apostle wrote:

• 👉every eye shall see Him
• 👉and they also which pierced him.
• 👉all kindreds (g5443) of the earth shall wail because of him.

Clues

The future event is the battle of Armeggedon:

• Revelation 14.
• Revelation 19.
• Zechariah 12.