Why we should believe in a Pre-Triulation Rapture
Defense of the end-time view of the
Pre-Tribulation Rapture of the Church. For that topic, lots of Bible
verses, readings and references rattle around in my skull. I can
extract each like a Powerball out of an air machine and present it
to the inquiring mind, but never in a linear, comprehensive manner
in which I particularly appreciate. And so, this article is my
attempt to organize my brain on the Pre-Tribulation Rapture view.
You’re welcome to come along on the journey!
Taking It to the Bedrock
My belief that there will be a
Pre-Tribulation Rapture of the Church stands on the bedrock of the
following foundational tenets:
A) The Bible is the Word of God
The 66-book canon called the Bible is God’s inerrant, infallible
message to mankind, explaining His purposes and plans for the ages (2
Tim. 3:16-17; 2
Peter 1:20-21). No other document can be reliably trusted, nor
remotely reach the bar for the requirements of authentication that
the Bible attains to so easily.
B) The Bible is to be Interpreted
Literally
God means what He says and says what He means. God wants His
creations to know His will plainly. While God does indulge in
picturesque descriptions and parables, an explanation almost always
follows or context is provided for explanation. Spiritualization of
text, therefore, has no proper place in interpreting Scriptures. Any
eschatological viewpoint must then be thrown out if it is based on
the reader’s desire to spiritualize the Bible into whatever ethereal
meaning they desire. Take the Bible for its plain sense meaning.
C) The Church and Israel Are Separate
Entities
Israel is not the Church and the Church is not Israel. A believer in
Christ becomes a member of the Church, whether Jew or Gentile (Rom.
1:16), but a member of the Church does not become a form of
spiritual Israel. God’s promises to Israel as a people and nation
(see next tenet) are not the same as for the Bride of Christ, the
Church.
D) A Literal 1000-Year Millennium
The Bible describes a future, literal 1000-year time period. The
Greek word “chilias” for “one thousand” appears six times in
Revelation 20, clearly marking the time period as having 1000
literal years. The purpose of this time period is for Jesus Christ
to have an earthly kingdom from which to base His rule and to
fulfill His promises (Gen.
13:14-17; 15:5,18-21; 2
Sam. 7:16-19; Isa.
10:21-22; 11:1-2; Jer.
23:5-8; 30:22; 31:31-34; Ezek.
11:18-20; 34:24; 36:24-28; Mic.
7:19-20; Hos.
3:5; Rom.
11:26-29).
E) A Literal 7-Year Tribulation
An upcoming time period has been set aside for God to pour out His
wrath upon the evil of the world, to regather Israel back into its
land, to force Israel to acknowledge Jesus as their Messiah, and for
the Messiah to return and fight for His believing remnant (Deut.
4:26-31; Isa.
13:6-13; 17:4-11; Jer.
30:4-11; Ezek.
20:33-38; Dan.
9:27; 12:1; Zech.
14:1-4; Matt.
24:9-31). This time period begins with a covenant between Israel
and the Antichrist (Dan.
9:27). The length of the Tribulation is seven years long,
described in a variety of ways as “one seven” year block (Dan.
9:27), consisting of two “times, time and half a time” (two
years + 1 year + half a year; Rev.
12:14), or two “1260 days” periods (Rev.
11:3), or two “42 month” periods (Rev.
11:2; 13:5).
F) Jesus Will Return Again to Earth
The Bible says Jesus will physically return again to earth (Zech.
14:1-21; Matt.
24:29-31; Mk.
13:24-27; Lk.
21:25-27; Rev.
19). Jesus returns is to defeat His enemies, set up His throne,
restore Israel, rule with “a rod of iron” and share His
authority with those who overcame in Him (Mat.
19:28; 25:31; Acts
1:3-6; Rev.
2:26-27; 3:21).
G) The Bible Teaches About a Rapture
1
Thessalonians 4:17 speaks of an event called “the Rapture”,
Latin “rapio,” Greek “harpazo,” which means “to catch up, to snatch
away, or to take out.” “After that, we who are still alive and
are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet
the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.” Paul
states that the concept of the Rapture is meant to encourage
believers during this Age (1
Thes. 4:18). Other New Testament references on the Rapture are Jn.
14:1-4; I
Cor. 15:51-58; and 1
Thes. 4:13-18.
These bedrock statements about the Bible
and its interpretation provide the foundation in which to analyze
the following reasons for why I believe the Bible teaches a
Pre-Tribulation Rapture of the Church.
1) The Bible describes the Rapture and
Second Coming as different events.
The Bible must see the Rapture (Jn.
14:1-4; I
Cor. 15:51-58; 1
Thes. 4:13-18) and the Second Coming (Zech.
14:1-21; Matt.
24:29-31; Mk.
13:24-27; Lk.
21:25-27; Rev.
19) as separate events, because when the verses are compared
they describe two very different scenarios:
1.
Rapture — believers meet
Christ in the air
Second Coming — Christ returns to the Mount of Olives to meet the
believers on earth
2.
Rapture — Mount of Olives is
unchanged
Second Coming — Mount of Olives is divided, forming a valley east of
Jerusalem
3.
Rapture — living believers
obtain glorified bodies
Second Coming — living believers remain in same bodies
4.
Rapture — believers go to
heaven
Second Coming — glorified believers come from heaven, earthly
believers stay on earth
5.
Rapture — world left unjudged
and living in sin
Second Coming — world is judged and righteousness is established
6.
Rapture — depicts deliverance
of the Church from wrath
Second Coming — depicts deliverance of believers who endured wrath
7.
Rapture — no signs precede it
Second Coming — many signs precede it
8.
Rapture — revealed only in
New Testament
Second Coming — revealed in both Old and New Testaments
9.
Rapture — deals with only the
saved
Second Coming — deals with both the saved and unsaved
10.
Rapture — Satan remains free
Second Coming — Satan is bound and thrown into the Abyss
Since the Rapture and Second Coming
clearly are different events that do not occur at the same time,
this would rule out a Post-Tribulation Rapture scenario.
2) The Rapture is described as occurring
at any time without warning.
Jesus stated in Matthew
24:42,44 to “Therefore
keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come…
So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an
hour when you do not expect him.” Not only do believers in
Christ not know when to expect Him, but the Father Himself seems to
have left Jesus out on the exact time His Son is to return. As Jesus
stated in Matthew
24:36, “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the
angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” These and
other verses (Mat.
24:36,42,44,50; 25:13; 1
Thes. 4:18; Tit.
2:13; 1
Jn. 2:28; 3:2-3)
indicate that Jesus’ arrival will come when nobody expects it.
The Second Coming, on the other hand, is
preceded by many events, such as the rise of the Antichrist (Rev.
12:13-17; Zech; 13:7-9), a treaty with Israel (Dan.
9:27), the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple (Mat.
24:15; 2
Thess. 2:3-4; Rev.
11:1-2), as well as plagues and judgments and persecutions
destroying most of the world’s population (Rev.
6-18). The Book of Revelation reports these events as occurring
during the 7-year Tribulation, which Revelation reveals precede the
Second Coming.
Because the Rapture could happen at any
moment and without warning and the Second Coming is preceded by so
many signs, then the Rapture and Second Coming must be different
events. The Rapture has to occur before the seven years’ worth of
signs, because Christians are called to look for the Lord’s return
rather than signs such as the Antichrist’s arrival. Once the signs
begin, then the seven year countdown begins towards its end with
Christ’s return at the Second Coming.
Jesus’ imminent return dismisses any of
the other viewpoints related to a rapture that occur within or at
the end of the Tribulation.
3) The Rapture and the removal of the
“Restrainer” occur at the same time.
In 2 Thessalonians, the church at
Thessalonica was afraid due to a false report that they had entered
the Day of the Lord (Tribulation) and had somehow missed the
Rapture. The Apostle Paul assured them that the Antichrist would not
be revealed until a restraining force would be taken away so that
the Man of Lawlessness could be revealed.
Because the revealing of the Antichrist
coincides with the beginning of the 7-year Tribulation starting with
his peace treaty with Israel (Dan.
9:27), then the Restrainer has to be removed before the
Tribulation. As the Holy Spirit also works in salvation (Jn.
16:8-11; 1
Jn. 5:7) during the Tribulation, then it is the Church that must
be the Restrainer that is removed. Therefore, the Rapture and the
removal of the Church must coincide, and at the beginning of the
seven years.
4) The Tribulation is for Israel’s
redemption.
Jeremiah 30:7 describes
the Tribulation as the “time of Jacob’s trouble” — “How awful
that day will be! None will be like it. It will be a time of trouble
for Jacob, but he will be saved out of it.”
In the Book of Matthew, whose primary
audience is the Jews, Jesus explains to his Jewish followers what
life will be like during the Tribulation. Also, Revelation
12 describes picturesquely a woman who gives birth and has to flee
due to persecution during the Tribulation. The context shows the
woman is Israel. And again, the Battle of Armageddon is the world
against Israel. Two-thirds of the Jewish people will be killed from
these battles. These texts and others show that the Tribulation is
meant for the redemption of the Jewish people.
Why are the Jews the object of
persecution during the Tribulation? For one, Satan hates the Jewish
people for giving the world the Scriptures and the Messiah, as well
as he wishes to thwart God’s promises to the Jews (see Bedrock #4).
Secondly, the Jews have to be so desperately brought low that they
finally call out to their Messiah “Blessed is he who comes in the
name of the Lord” (Mat.
23:39; Lk.
13:35). The Tribulation, then, is used for Israel’s redemption
which also results in the punishment of the wicked. The Church does
not fit into this scenario, and are left out of the purposes of the
Tribulation. They would need to be removed — caught up — before the
Tribulation begins.
5) The Tribulation is not for the Church.
The Tribulation is God’s wrath upon the
unbelieving world, and not for those who are saved from Christ’s
resurrection to the Rapture — called the Church. Yes believers have
suffered all throughout human history, but there is a special time
(just like the Flood) set apart called the Day of the Lord for God’s
wrath. Christians suffering and the Tribulation/Day of the Lord are
different.
True believers in Christ during the
Church Age, represented by the Church of Philadelphia, are promised
in Revelation
3:10, “Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I
will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon
the whole world to test those who live on the earth.” Paul
states in 1
Thessalonians 1:10, “and to wait for his Son from heaven,
whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming
wrath.” He also states in 1
Thessalonians 5:9, “For God did not appoint us to suffer
wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans
5:9 states, “Since we have now been justified by his blood,
how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!”Ephesians
5:6 states, “Let no one deceive you with empty words, for
because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are
disobedient.” Colossians
3:4 states, “When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you
also will appear with him in glory.” Again and again, Scripture
states the Church is not meant to endure God’s wrath.
6) God’s wrath involves the whole 7-Year
Tribulation.
The view that the Rapture will occur at
the mid-point of the Tribulation is based upon 1
Corinthians 15:52 which states that the Rapture will occur at
the blowing of “the last trumpet.” This Mid-Tribulation
Rapture view then declares this trumpet to be the last of the seven
trumpets in Revelation 11 that is blown at the mid-point of the
Tribulation. Why of the 114 references to trumpets in the Bible
these two are identified as one and the same only defies sound Bible
study. The context clearly shows the last trumpet of 1 Corinthians
15 is blown for believers whereas the seven trumpets of Revelation
8, 9 and 11 are sounded for unbelievers. The Revelation trumpets
therefore can have no relevance for the Church.
Proponents of the Pre-Wrath Rapture view
believe the Rapture will occur about three-quarters of the way
through the Tribulation, about five years or shortly thereafter,
with up to four comings of Christ. According to Dr. David Reagan in
his article The
Pre-Wrath Rapture:
“Those who espouse this viewpoint believe
that the Seal Judgments are the wrath of Man and Satan and that they
continue throughout the first half of the Tribulation and into the
second half, right up to the three-quarters point, or shortly
thereafter. They place the Trumpet Judgments in the last quarter of
the Tribulation and the Bowl Judgments in the first 30 days
following the end of Daniel’s 70th Week of Years.”
But, isn’t it Jesus Himself who breaks
the seals that launch each of the Revelation 6 seal judgments which
occur at the beginning of the Tribulation? Also, the seven angels
who blow the trumpets that initiate each of the trumpet judgments
are given their trumpets at the throne of God (Revelation
8:2). And, Revelation
15:1 states that the bowl judgments at the end of the
Tribulation finish the wrath of God, not begin His wrath.
Because these judgments are initiated by
Jesus Himself at the beginning of the Tribulation, the whole
Tribulation must be God’s wrath, which the Church is exempt from.
7) The Old Testament and Revelation leave
the Church out of the Tribulation.
The focus of the Tribulation — to pour
out God’s wrath on the earth just like the Flood (Isa.
24:22; Zeph.
3:8; 1
Thes. 5:3; 2
Thes. 2:12) and to bring the Jewish people to accept Jesus as
Messiah (Mat.
23:39; Lk.
13:35) — is addressed by the Old Testament and the Book of
Revelation to the unbelievers and the Jewish people. In any biblical
content concerning the Tribulation/Day of the Lord, the Church
cannot be found.
The whole concept of the Church was a
mystery to the Old Testament prophets. They focused on the nation of
Israel. The Book of Matthew is written to the Jewish people, whom
Jesus is addressing in Matthew 24. In the Book of Revelation,
chapters 2 and 3 cover the Church Age, but then there is no mention
of the Church until after the Tribulation/Day of the Lord chapters
6-18. In Chapter 19, the Church returns to the texts and can be
found, not suffering, but celebrating with Christ at the Marriage
Supper of the Lamb and preparing to return with Jesus to earth.
8) The Church is busy elsewhere during
the Tribulation.
While the 7-year Tribulation is
occurring, the Bible records the Church will be busy with three
events. None of the three have to do with suffering on a world being
destroyed.
The first event the raptured Church will
participate in is a judgment by God — the Judgment of the Just. This
judgment on works is not to determine eternal destiny, but to
determine degrees of reward (2
Cor. 5:10; Rev.
19:6-9).
The second event is the Marriage Supper
of the Lamb. This feast celebrates the spiritual marriage of
Christ’s Bride — the Church — to her Savior. Revelation
19:7-9 shares this wonderful celebration, “Let us rejoice and
be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come,
and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean,
was given her to wear. (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of
the saints.) Then the angel said to me, ‘Write: ‘Blessed are those
who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!’ And he added,
‘These are the true words of God.'”
The third event follows the Marriage
Supper of the Lamb and is the Church’s preparation to follow the
King of Kings into the Battle of Armageddon at the conclusion of the
Tribulation. This event is the Second Coming of Jesus Christ (Zech.
14:1-21; Matt.
24:29-31; Mk.
13:24-27; Lk.
21:25-27; Rev.
19:11-21). Revelation
19:14 identifies the Church in their “fine linen, white and
clean,” which was given to them during the first event — the
Judgment of the Just. The Church and angelic forces follow the King
of Kings into His Second Coming to the earth, but only Jesus Himself
will engage in battle and with mere words defeats the nations in
siege against Jerusalem.
9) There needs to be sheep to separate
from the goats.
If the Church is raptured at the end of
the Tribulation, receives their glorified bodies, and then
immediately u-turns back with Christ for the Second Coming as the
Post-Tribulation Rapture view holds, then what believer in Christ
will be available for the Sheep and Goats Judgment of Matthew 25?
The only people left on earth would be unbelievers, called goats. No
believer — sheep — would be available for God to put into the sheep
category.
Since those who are in glorified bodies
will be like the angels in that they aren’t given in marriage or
reproduce (Matt.
22:30; Mk.
12:25), then a believing, unglorified, human remnant must make
it into the sheep category and go on to produce the nations during
the Millennial reign of Christ (Ezek.
43:13-27; Isa.
19:21; Isa.
65:20-22; Rev.
20:7-10). This would mean that people would need to come to
Christ during the Tribulation yet after the Rapture to produce this
Millennial population.
10) The Bible shows God rescues the
righteous from His wrath.
Being a Christian means having to endure
suffering and trials at the hand of man (Jn.
16:33; Phil.
1:27; 1
Thes. 3:3; 1
Pet. 4:12-13). But, the Bible has many examples of those who put
their faith in God are exempt from God’s wrath. Noah and his family
were removed from the Flood waters that in God’s wrath were used to
judge and cleanse the earth. Lot and his wife and two daughters were
made to leave Sodom and Gomorrah before God burned the towns up with
fire and sulfur. Rahab’s family was set apart when Joshua’s army
invaded Jericho.
Could believers be miraculously protected
during the Tribulation, like the Israelites were during the plagues
on Egypt? Yes, the 144,000 Jewish evangelists from Revelation 7 and
14, for instance, will be divinely protected. But, the slaughter of
believers during the Tribulation will be so massive that they are
certainly not under any special protection (Rev.
7:9-17; 20:4).
11) The Pre-Tribulation Rapture view is
not too new to discount.
Some will argue that the Pre-Tribulation
Rapture view is just “too new” to be considered viable. Critics will
point to the origin of the modern Pre-Tribulation view and credit
John Nelson Darby (1800-1882) with its founding. But, is that
assessment historically accurate? Indeed, it is not.
The Early Church fathers’ such as
Barnabas (ca.100-105), Papias (ca. 60-130), Justin Martyr (110-195),
Irenaeus (120-202), Tertullian (145-220), Hippolytus (ca. 185-236),
Cyprian (200-250), and Lactantius (260-330) wrote on the imminent
return of Jesus Christ, the central argument for the Pre-Tribulation
Rapture view.
Biblical truth is determined by
Scripture, and not how that teaching has been perceived at different
times during history. When Augustine began spiritualizing the Bible,
his view of a non-literal interpretation took hold of the church
until the Renaissance, obliterating the Premillennial and
Pre-Tribulation Rapture views in favor of Amillennialism. But, some
Medieval writers such as Ephraem of Nisibis (306-373), Abbot
Ceolfrid’s Latin Codex Amiatinus (ca. 690-716), and Brother Dolcino
wrote statements that distinguish the Rapture from the Second
Coming.
When the chains of allegorical
interpretation began to fall off beginning with the Reformation in
the 1400 and 1500s, writers such as Joseph Mede (1586-1638),
Increase Mather (1639-1723), Peter Jurieu (1687), Philip Doddridge
(1738), John Gill (1748), James Macknight (1763), Thomas Scott
(1792) and Morgan Edwards (1722-1795) all wrote concerning the
Rapture occurring separate from the Second Coming. Even in the more
modern church, those like William Witherby (1818) were precursors to
John Darby in support of the view. The Pre-Tribulation Rapture view
is indeed then not only biblical, but supported throughout Church
history.
Closing Thoughts
I thank you for coming down this mental
journey with me concerning why I believe in the Pre-Tribulation
Rapture of the Church. Hopefully it has confirmed or challenged some
of your eschatological ideas. Bear in mind, though, that one’s
end-time views have no bearing on the doctrine of salvation. What is
to be celebrated is that our salvation will one day lead us upwards
to be with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ forever and ever.
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