Revelation 11:18

18  And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.

Why are the nations angry? If we read the prophecies in Isaiah and Jeremiah about the counterfeit kingdom of Babylon, it seems many nations get angry at the Beast kingdom and come to destroy her after they learn the truth of the deception. They also are angry because they do not want Jesus to set up His Kingdom of God on earth and rule over them either.

Psalms 2:1 Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? 2  The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed,  saying, 3 Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. 4 He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. 5 Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure.  6 Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. 7 I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. 8 Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. 9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. 10 Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. 11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.  12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.

The world is now about to endure the seven vial judgments of the wrath of God. While the wrath of God is happening on the earth the dead in Christ are judged in heaven by Jesus and they are given rewards and positions of authority for the work they allowed the Spirit to do through their body. This passage gives us a hint that this judgment of rewards by Jesus occurs at the same time as the armies are being gathered for destruction. At this point, there is only a very short time before the return of Christ in glory. The body or bride of Christ is now in heaven and is completed.

Satan will deceive the nations through lying spirits and with the help of his angels he will gather all the worlds armies to come against Jesus who is coming to rule the world from Jerusalem.

The few people not killed in the final 3 ½ years will be judged at the sheep and goat judgments of the nations that takes place just after Jesus returns. Those that survived and did not take the mark of the Beast will be judged at this time to decide if they will be allowed to live and enter His kingdom or be gathered for destruction along with the forces of the Beast (Matthew 25:31).