The above prophesied "hour of trial" has not yet occurred but one I am fairly sure is imminent, based upon the "signs of the times." Jesus spoke of this end time hour of trial, the one which will precede his "parousia" (coming), in these words:
"For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened." (Matt. 24: 21-22 kjv)
Here the "hour" of testing is described as a time of "great tribulation" and takes in, or is shortened to "days," though it does not say how many days. It is also called a "trial" and a "testing" of those who populate the planet, "the whole world (cosmos)," all they who "dwell on the earth," indicating that the trial will include every person on the planet.
The Revelation text above announces the coming hour of trial, the testing of the whole race of mankind, and in the scenes of the vision of John of Christ's coming Apocalypse (revelation or appearing or coming again) in chapters following this announcement of the risen Lord we see all the evils of that awful time of tribulation, of a nature and to an extent never seen before on earth. What transpires under the opening of the seven seals of the scroll (chapter five onward) is this time of tribulation, this time of testing. So we read:
"Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?” And I said to him, “Sir, you know.” So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb." (Rev. 7: 13-14 nkjv)
This time of trial and testing will not follow the rapture or resurrection of believers, but precede it. From the above verse we see how many of the saints in heaven, who were martyred in the time of the great tribulation, had been in that tribulation, for they cannot come out of it if they were never in it. It will test every man to discover his standing with God. And, how will most respond to this trial by judgment? The record in the Apocalypse foretells us, saying:
"But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk. And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries[fn] or their sexual immorality or their thefts." (Rev. 9: 20-21 nkjv)
"And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory. And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds." (Rev. 16: 9-11 nkjv)
The masses will show their evil nature in this time of testing and they will fail the test, and be condemned by the trial by tribulation.
Let us not be as those who refused to repent. Let us follow the example of the Ninevites who repented in sackcloth and ashes by the mere warning of coming destruction from the Lord. Let us do as Christ urged in the context of this coming trial - "hold fast to what you have and let no one take your crown."
In this coming time of great tribulation, we will be able to superlatively say ----
"The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked."
(Psa. 11: 5)
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