Imminence Part 2

Q. I find it illogical reasoning. Pre-tribulation believers say that the word Church is not mentioned after Revelations chapter 3, which means the Church won’t be on earth (raptured out). Jesus was giving messages to the churches, so naturally, the word church was no longer mentioned subsequently. But what about the words “the saints” and “God’s people”?

Pre-tribulation supporters say the rapture is secret. How could it be secret when suddenly millions or billions of people disappear and accidents everywhere (driverless cars), missing family members, and children orphaned?

They say Rev. 3:10 means to take out of (raptured), but the original text means to protect. If Rev. 3:10 means raptured out, then no need for verses 11 and 12 as they won’t be on earth!

The problem may arise from a mindset that prioritizes ease and comfort. When someone with that mentality reads a verse such as:

1 Thes 1:10 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come,

the interpretation would focus on being delivered from trouble altogether.

However, historically, that had not been God’s way. For example, He kept Noah’s family safe through the Flood. He did not whisk them away before the Flood came. When God delivered the Israelites out of Egypt, He delivered them through the Red Sea. God did not “rapture” them to safety. Throughout Israel’s history, He kept the nation as He promised the patriarchs but allowed them to suffer the consequences of their sins so that they would learn to follow Him. The same is true throughout church history. Why would He change His method to favor the last generation of Christians when most people’s love has grown cold (Mt 24:12)? So they won’t face trouble and learn? Hardly!

To justify their assertion, pre-tribulation proponents use circumstantial “evidence.” For instance,

• Rev 3:10 Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.

They claimed that “keep you from the hour of testing” means “keep you from the time of trouble,” i.e., take or rapture you away to avoid that period altogether. You pointed out that the New Living Translation is:

• NLT Because you have obeyed my command to persevere, I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole world to test those who belong to this world.

But what is God’s method of protection? Remember the Ten Plagues?

• Ex 9:6 So the Lord did this thing on the next day, and all the livestock of Egypt died; but of the livestock of the sons of Israel, not one died.
• Ex 9:26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail.
• Ex 10:23 They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but all the sons of Israel had light in their dwellings.
• Ex 12:23 For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to smite you.

God’s way has always been to protect through the time of testing, not avoiding it. So, the argument based on the wording “hour” or “time” is not supported by actual examples.

What about the absence of the word “church” after Rev 3? Does that mean the Church has been raptured and is no longer on earth? Some even suggest that Rev 4:1’s “come up here” refers to the rapture:

• Rev 4:1 After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.”

This misinterprets Scripture as the phrase applies strictly to John, not the Church.

The above is an example of an “argument from silence,” a weak form of evidence. Borrowing from forensic investigations, direct physical, written, or verbal evidence is needed to “prove” a case. Circumstantial evidence can support an argument but is insufficient to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. Your observations of “the saints” and “God’s people” are direct evidence in referencing the Church. But of course, pre-tribulation supporters claim that these apply only to the Jews or Christians saved after the rapture. If the mind is closed, you can find all kinds of excuses to justify yourself, which is sad!

Multiple Raptures? (Part 3 of 4)

The asserted differences consist of:

1. In the Rapture, believers meet the Lord in the air (1 Thes 4:17); in the Second Coming, Christ comes to the earth with His saints (Rev 19:14).

The Greek verb for “meet” is apantēsis, used when VIPs made a formal visit, and a welcoming party went out to meet and escort him back to their city or house. This word occurs three times in the NT, the other two being:

1. Mt 25:6 But at midnight, there was a shout, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.
2. Acts 28:15 And the brethren, when they heard about us, came from there as far as the Market of Appius and Three Inns to meet us. And when Paul saw them, he thanked God, and took courage.

In Mt 25, the wise virgins were ready and returned to the wedding feast with the bridegroom. In Acts 28, the brethren came from neighboring towns to accompany Paul to Rome. So, my interpretation of 1 Thes 4:17 is those believers went to meet the Lord in the air, then returned with Him to earth. It was one single event, not two separate incidents.

2. The Rapture is before the Tribulation (1 Thes 5:9; Rev 3:10); the Second Coming is after (Rev 17-18).

First, what do the passages say?

• 1 Thes 5:9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
• Rev 3:10 Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.
• Rev 17-18 Please refer to the Bible.

Pre-tribulation, mid-tribulation, and pre-wrath supporters claim that “not destined us for wrath” and “keep you from the hour of testing” imply that believers will be removed or raptured before the tribulation or wrath. That is one possible assumption. Another interpretation is that God will keep believers safe even as they go through tribulations all around them, as when the Lord made a distinction between Israel and Egypt during the ten plagues (Ex 8:22, 9:4, 26, 10:23, 12:13). The latter is God’s pattern, not the former. Throughout biblical and church history, God protected and delivered His people, not by removing them from the scene, but as they underwent trials.

• The Rapture is God delivering believers from the earth (1 Thes 4:13-17, 5:9); the Second Coming is God taking away unbelievers to judgment (Mt 13:41-42, 24:40-41, Rev 19:20-21). I will cite only those Rapture verses not already quoted above. The Second Coming passages are listed in full.

• 1 Thes 4:13-15 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. For this, we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
• Mt 13:41-42 The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
• Mt 24:40-41 Then there will be two men in the field; one will be taken, and one will be left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken, and one will be left.
• Rev 19:20-21 And the beast was seized and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone. And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh.

The Second Coming verses indicate God judging unbelievers, the Antichrist, and the false prophet, but do they prove that it is separate from the Rapture? My answer is NO. The difference in focus is easily explained by the respective context. In 1 Thes 4, Paul was comforting the Thessalonian Christians who thought the dead in Christ had missed the resurrection and were grieving over them. So, his emphasis was on explaining the sequence of the Rapture, not the details of Christ’s return. In Mt 13, 24, and Rev 19, Matthew and John were describing the end times and final judgment, so the focus was on the Lord judging the unbelievers.

What I find surprising, however, is that supporters of the separate incidents missed “the sign of the Son of Man.” As I have demonstrated, this can be none other than resurrection. In other words, the resurrection and rapture of Christians take place when Christ returns to judge the world, and the two are simply two sides of the same event!

(To be continued)

Multiple Raptures? (Part 2 of 4)

The classic texts for the Rapture are:

• 1 Thes 4:16-17 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.
• 1 Co 15:51-52 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

Note the following:

• The Lord will come with a shout and trumpet call, i.e., it will NOT be secret;
• The dead in Christ will be raised imperishable and rise first (resurrection);
• The alive in Christ will be changed, from perishable to imperishable, mortal to immortal, and be caught up (raptured) together with them to meet the Lord in the air;
• This will happen in the twinkling of an eye, i.e., instantaneous.

The primary texts for the Return of Christ are:

• Mt 24:29-31 “But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other. (Also Mk 13:24-27; Lk 21:25-27)
• Rev 19:11-16 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness, He judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems, and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”

Again, note the following:

• Christ’s return will be after the tribulation;
• There will be cosmic cataclysms;
• The sign of the Son of Man will appear, which we will examine next;
• Heavenly armies will follow Him;
• He will send His angels with a great trumpet to gather His elect i.e., Christians;
• He will strike down the nations with the wrath of God.

Before we compare the Rapture to the Return, let’s see what this sign of the Son of Man is. The scribes and Pharisees repeatedly asked the Lord for a sign. His answer was:

• Matthew 12:39-40 But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
• Jonah 1:7 And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights.
• Matthew 16:4 An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign; and a sign will not be given it, except the sign of Jonah.” And He left them and went away.
• Luke 11:29-30 As the crowds were increasing, He began to say, “This generation is a wicked generation; it seeks for a sign, and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah. For just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.

Some people thought the sign of the Son of Man was the cross. But the Lord Himself said unequivocally that His sign is the sign of Jonah, which is being raised from the dead after three days and three nights, i.e., resurrection. With this understanding, let us evaluate the claims of the separate incidents schools.

(To be continued)

Zephaniah 3:9 History or Prophecy?

Q. In the book of Zephaniah 3:9 onwards, is God referring to when the Israelites are released from the Persians, and went back to rebuild Jerusalem (Ezra and Nehemiah)? Or is He talking about after Jesus comes?

A. Many scholars believe Zeph 3:9 onwards refer to the Millennium when Jesus comes again, based on:

• Zeph 3:8 Indeed, My decision is to gather nations, To assemble kingdoms, To pour out on them My indignation (NASB) The word “indignation” in the OT is the equivalent of “tribulation” in the NT. Zeph is referring to God gathering nations & kingdoms at Megiddo for the battle of Armageddon.
• Zeph 3:9 For at that time I will change the speech of the peoples to a pure speech (ESV) Some believe God will reverse the confusion of languages at Babel to give all people a common language.
• Descriptions in v 13, 15 such as no injustice, no lies, the Lord in their midst, never again fear evil etc. have not yet happened.

These do not fit the interpretation referring to history well.

Millennium

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Pictures show:
* Zechariah 14:9
* Zechariah outline
* A-millennialism
* Post-millennialism
* Pre-millennialism

Q. Is Zechariah 14 talking about the Millennium after the last week (7 years) of Daniel’s 70 ‘7s’?

A. To know where Zech. 14 fits in, we need to see the text in its context. Let’s begin by looking at Zechariah’s structure. Zechariah uses a series of 8 visions, 4 messages, and 2 oracles to portray God’s future plan for His covenant people. The first 8 chapters were written to encourage the remnant while they were rebuilding the temple; while the last 6 were written after the completion of the temple to anticipate Israel’s coming Messiah. The book divides into:

Ch. 1-6 Eight Visions
Ch. 7-8 Four Messages
Ch. 9-14 Two Oracles

The first oracle (ch. 9-11) concerns the first advent and rejection of Israel’s coming King. The second oracle (ch. 12-14) concerns the second advent of Christ and the acceptance of Israel’s King. In ch. 12 the nations will attack Jerusalem, but the Messiah will come and deliver His people. In ch. 13 they will be cleansed of impurity and falsehood, and in ch. 14 the Messiah will come in power to judge the nations and reign in Jerusalem over the whole earth.

Chapter 14 itself is divided as follows:

V 1-2 Final Siege of Jerusalem
V 3-8 Second Coming of the Messiah
V 9-21 Kingdom of the Messiah

So the context of Zech. 14 consists of tribulation, followed by the coming of the Messiah, who will usher in His Kingdom. Now there are 3 main schools of interpreting eschatology:

1. Amillennialism: The view that there will be no period of earthly reign of Christ either before or after His Second Coming. This school allegorizes the Bible. While I believe there are allegories in the Bible (e.g. Ezk. 17:2, 24:3; Gal. 4:24), they are identified within the text as such, and not for the reader to spiritualize into something they themselves imagined. I cannot twist the text into what it did not say or mean, so this view is rejected.
2. Postmillennialism: The approach which believes that Christ will return following the thousand-year reign. This means that He will reign without being physically present. Again, this is not what the text said, and I cannot accept this view.
3. Premillennialism: The belief that Christ will return and then set up a period of His earthly reign for one thousand years. Some evangelicals take “thousand years” to mean a long time.

I subscribe to a literal interpretation of the Bible as far as possible, with the provision that sometimes the authors would use figures of speech to convey their meaning. The view that best fits all the data of Zech. 14:9-21 is Premillennialism, with Christ returning to set up His Kingdom for a thousand years. I therefore concur with your conclusion.