How many times is "day of the LORD" in the Bible?
The phrase "day of the LORD" appears 25 times in the King James Version, in 23 verses. The World English Bible has it 23 times (day of the Lord 4, day of Yahweh 17, Yahweh's day 2).
The World English Bible writes the day of Yahweh in the Old Testament prophets (Joel 2:1, Amos 5:18), Yahweh's day in Ezekiel 13:5 and 30:3, and the day of the Lord in the New Testament (1 Thessalonians 5:2). All three are counted. Two of the KJV's five New Testament uses, 1 Corinthians 5:5 and 2 Corinthians 1:14, read the day of the Lord Jesus; the World English Bible keeps the first and has the day of our Lord Jesus in the second.
Day of the LORD in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of day of the LORD counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| day of the lord | 25 | 4 |
| day of Yahweh | not counted | 17 |
| Yahweh's day | not counted | 2 |
| Total | 25 | 23 |
Which books mention day of the LORD most
Day of the LORD appears in 14 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Joel has the most (5), then Isaiah (3) and Amos (3).
First and last mention of day of the LORD
For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
The verse that uses it most is Amos 5:18, 2 times (tied with Zephaniah 1:14):
Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light.
Where the two translations differ
2 verses match in the KJV but not in the World English Bible, and 0 verses match only in the World English Bible, usually because the other translation chose a different word there.
Jeremiah 46:10: counted in the KJV only
For this is the day of the Lord GOD of hosts, a day of vengeance, that he may avenge him of his adversaries: and the sword shall devour, and it shall be satiate and made drunk with their blood: for the Lord GOD of hosts hath a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates.
For that day is of the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, a day of vengeance, that he may avenge himself of his adversaries. The sword will devour and be satiated, and will drink its fill of their blood; for the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, has a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates.
2 Corinthians 1:14: counted in the KJV only
As also ye have acknowledged us in part, that we are your rejoicing, even as ye also are ours in the day of the Lord Jesus.
as also you acknowledged us in part, that we are your boasting, even as you also are ours, in the day of our Lord Jesus.
Verses with day of the LORD on our topic pages
3 verses that use day of the LORD in the World English Bible are in our topic collections.
For you yourselves know well that the day of the Lord comes like a thief in the night.
On: What Does the Bible Say About the Rapture? 24 Verses, Time
The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of Yahweh comes.
On: End Times
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.
On: End Times
Common questions
How many times is day of the LORD in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 20 of the 25 uses are in the Old Testament and 5 in the New Testament. Day of the LORD appears in 14 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Joel has the most (5), then Isaiah (3) and Amos (3).
Where is day of the LORD first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is Isaiah 2:12: "For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:" The last is 2 Peter 3:10.
More word counts: glory of the LORD, LORD of hosts, Holy Ghost, only begotten, love, God, Jesus, Christ, or all 686 words.
Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-11-03.