January 19

“Ye shall have tribulation ten days.” Revelation 2:10

What is the meaning of this “ten days”? When Abraham's servant wanted to carry off Rebecca, her brother and mother requested that she stay with them ten days. When Daniel and his friends would not allow themselves to be defiled by the king’s food, they asked the officer in charge to try them for ten days. So the words must have a meaning in the Bible. It seems possible that they indicate “just a short time.” Is this the Lord's meaning in his message to the church at Smyrna?

He seems to be saying, first, that there are certain days marked out for our suffering, and that those days are calculated by him. They are inescapable, but after they are over we shall be freed. On the other hand, he seems to affirm that the trials are brief. The ten days are but a short time. No matter what tribulation you pass through before God, it will soon be past. Be faithful therefore, he awaits you with a crown of life.