Matthew 24:29-30 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.

As I read this over again, my focus changed from those things I have pondered countless times to an issue I have overlooked. It is in this line of verse; all the tribes of the earth mourn. Everyone, all the tribes of earth, will be in the same condition of mourning. What exactly are they going to be mourning?

I am considering the issue of the light being taken away as a source of the common cause. What does light provide? Illumination, vision, a perception of our reality, what we perceive to be our truths. Having all that stripped away, no matter what we believed, can only be received in one way. I was wrong. No matter what they thought, no matter what believed, no matter where they placed their trust, they all came to an understanding that they were wrong.

Then appeared the sign of the Son, a symbol of His identity which is the polar opposite of their wrong condition. They see the truth coming. I do not know how long they will mourn because it is not a mourning like anything they have ever experienced before. I doubt the classic cycle of mourning; denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance will occur. They will not have enough time for all that. Because they do not know truth and truth is coming, they will not know what to expect.

We who do believe understand exactly what is about to happen.

The great and terrible day of the Lord is about to fall upon them.