The Rapture
By Ralph
Woodrow*
Contents:
1. The Rapture -- When?
2. Will the Return of Christ be in Two
Stages
3. Coming “For” and Coming “With” the
Saints
4. An Examimation of Dispensational Proof
Texts
5. Will Christ Return “At Any Moment”?
Copyright Information
1. The Rapture --
When?
Those who hold what is called the “dispensational” interpretation of
prophecy, teach that the Second Coming of Christ will be in two
stages: first, the RAPTURE (his coming for the saints), and then
later the REVELATION (his coming with the saints). The interval
between these two events is generally regarded as seven years
(Daniel’s 70th week). During this time, according to this view, the
Antichrist will make a seven-year covenant with the Jews in which he
will allow them to offer sacrifices in a rebuilt temple at
Jerusalem. But then after three and a half years, he will break his
covenant and place an idol (the abomination of desolation) in the
holy of holies of the temple. The Jews will refuse to bow and a
great persecution will result -- the time of Jacob’s trouble.
Finally, at the close of the tribulation period (the end of the
age), Christ will return in power and great glory.
In the chapters that follow, we shall have occasion to examine all
of these things in the light of the Scriptures -- the tribulation,
the abomination of desolation, the 70th week, Jacob’s trouble, the
Antichrist, etc. But for now, we shall look at the first point in
the dispensational outline: the rapture. Those who hold that the
Second Coming of Christ will be in two stages, believe that verses
such as Revelation 1:7, “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every
eye shall see him”, refer to the REVELATION -- his coming in open
power and glory. The RAPTURE, on the other hand, is presented as a
quiet, invisible, and secret coming of Christ for his church. The
following quotations from dispensational writers are representative
of this interpretation:
“Quickly and INVISIBLY, unperceived
by the world, the Lord will come as a thief in the night and catch
away His waiting saints.”1
“His appearance in the clouds will be veiled to the human eye and
NO ONE WILL SEE HIM. He will slip in, slip out; move in to get His
jewels and slip out as under the cover of night.”2
“[The rapture] will be a SECRET appearing, and only the believers
will know about it.”3
“It will be a SECRET rapture -- QUIET, NOISELESS, sudden as the
step of the thief in the night. All that the world will know will
be that multitudes at once have gone.”4
But do the scriptures teach that the rapture will be a secret,
invisible, and quiet event? Let us look at the main verse on the
rapture and see.
“For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a SHOUT, with
the VOICE of the archangel, and with the TRUMP of God: and the dead
in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall
be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in
the air” (1 Thess. 4:16, 17).
To us, this verse indicates anything but a quiet, secret rapture.
Whether we take the “shout”, the “voice”, and the “trump” in a
literal sense or as having a figurative meaning, either way, this
passage does not convey the idea of a secret and quiet event! If
anything, it would indicate that the coming of the Lord will be a
loud, noisy, open, and wonderous event. Amid the sound of the Lord
himself descending from heaven with a shout, the voice of the
archangel, and the trumpet of God, there will be the sounds of
praise and rejoicing from vast multitudes of saints as they are
caught up to meet the Lord! Where is any secrecy here? This is not
the description of a hidden and quiet event. Nevertheless, in spite
of every indication to the contrary, this verse is constantly used
as a text for sermons which describe the rapture as a secret,
hidden, and quiet coming of Christ!
The scriptures do teach, of course, that Christ will return “as a
thief in the night.” This means that the TIME of his coming is
unknown. It will come as a complete surprise to those who are not
watching for his return. But the use of this term never indicates in
any way that the EVENT ITSELF will be secret and quiet. The “thief”
passages are found in the words of Jesus, Peter, and Paul, which we
will now consider.
First, let us look at the words of Jesus himself: “But know this,
that if the good man of the house had known in what watch the THIEF
would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his
house to be broken up. Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an
hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh” (Mt. 24:43, 44; also Lk.
12:39, 40). The return of Christ will be like the coming of a thief
in the sense that we know not WHEN it will be. We must watch at all
times. But there is nothing here to indicate that the event itself
will be secret.
Instead of teaching that he would return in a secret coming, Jesus
actually warned against this concept: “If any man shall say unto
you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not . . . If they
shall say unto you . . . behold, he is in the SECRET chambers;
believe it not. FOR as the lightning cometh out of the east, and
shineth unto the west, so shall also the coming of the Son of man
be” (Mt. 24:23,26,27). Whatever else may be included in these
statements, one thing is certain: such wording is surely contrary to
the idea of “secrecy” in connection with the coming of Christ.
Also in the context of Matthew 24, Jesus stressed that men do not
know the day nor the hour of the Second Coming (Mt. 24:36). It will
be “as it was in the days of Noah” when people were eating,
drinking, and getting married -- not expecting destruction to fall.
They “knew not UNTIL the flood came, and took them all away, so
shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (verses 38, 39). The
wicked knew not until the flood came -- but, obviously, when it came
they knew it. It was no secret event. It was observed by believers
and unbelievers.
“If therefore thou shalt not watch”, Jesus said, “I will come on
thee as a THIEF, and thou shalt not know what hour I shall come upon
thee” (Rev. 3:3). “Behold, I come as a THIEF. Blessed is he that
watcheth” (Rev. 16:15). Here again is the warning to “watch”, for we
know not the time of his coming. He will come as a thief. But there
is nothing here to indicate a secret and quiet coming of Christ in
which he will mysteriously take believers out of this world so that
no one will know what happened to them or who took them. We should
not think that the Lord will prowl around like a thief, working in
the dark, afraid of being discovered. The meaning is that he will
COME “as a thief”, not that he will ACT like a thief!
Next, we look at the words of Peter. Though scoffers will say:
“Where is the promise of his coming?”, Peter assures us that the day
of the Lord will come. We do not know WHEN, however, for “the day of
the Lord will come AS A THIEF IN THE NIGHT” (2 Peter 3:10).
But it is evident that Peter did not mean that the event itself will
be quiet, for he goes on to say that it will be accompanied with a
great NOISE! “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”! This
is just the opposite of what many teach.
The final New Testament “thief” passage is found in the words of
Paul. Turning again to the noted rapture passage (1 Thess. 4), we
find that after speaking of the Lord’s coming with a shout, the
voice of the archangel, and the trump of God, Paul goes on to
explain that we do not know WHEN this will be, for that day will
come as a thief in the night. “But of the times and seasons,
brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know
perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh AS A THIEF IN THE
NIGHT” (1 Thess. 5:1,2). What is unknown and hidden? It cannot be
that the coming of Christ will be a secret event, for the context
speaks of this as being glorious, open, noisy! Again, we see that it
is the TIME that is hidden. We know not the times and seasons.
Paul continues with these words: “For when they shall say, Peace and
safety; then SUDDEN DESTRUCTION cometh upon them, as travail upon a
woman with child; and they shall not escape . . . But ye, brethren,
are NOT IN DARKNESS, that that day should overtake you as a thief”
(verses 3 ,4), for those who truly follow Christ will “watch” at all
times and seasons.
Having now examined the rapture passage (1 Thess. 4) and all of the
“thief” passages, we fail to find any scriptural basis for the
teaching that the rapture will be a secret, invisible, quiet event.
If anything, the evidence is to the contrary. Where, then, do the
scriptures place the rapture? Will it be before a seven year
tribulation period? Or will it be at the end of the age?
Shortly before his death, Jesus spoke these words to his disciples:
“In the world ye shall have tribulation . . .” (John 16:33). The
verses that follow record the prayer in which Jesus prayed for his
disciples. As he prayed to the heavenly Father, he said: “I pray NOT
that thou shouldest TAKE THEM OUT OF THE WORLD, but that thou
shouldest keep them from the evil” (John 17:15).
Though it would be no easy task to take a stand for Christ; though
they would be persecuted; though in the world they would have
tribulation; yet, Jesus did not pray that the church would be taken
out of the world! The church was to remain in the world, but it
would not be of the world.
Some might object, however, that Jesus was praying only for his
immediate disciples of that time. But not so! “Neither pray I for
these alone”, he said, “but for them also which shall believe on me
through their word” (verse 20). Does this not include us today? Have
not we believed on Christ as a result of the message that was handed
down to us from those original disciples of Christ? Indeed we have.
So Jesus was praying for us too! He said so. He prayed we would be
kept from the evil of the world, but he did not pray that we would
be taken out of the world -- even though in the world we would have
tribulation!
Let us suppose for a moment that Jesus had told believers: “In the
world there shall be tribulation . . . but I will pray that you will
be taken out of the world.” If Jesus said this, those who teach a
pre-tribulation rapture would have a basis for their position -- and
this statement would no doubt be quoted often as a proof text. But
since this is NOT what the verse says -- but just the OPPOSITE --
surely this should be regarded as evidence against the idea of a
special, “secret” coming of Christ to take the church out of this
world.
Instead of the church being taken out of the world, Jesus taught
that it would remain in the world to accomplish a definite purpose:
to preach the gospel. Jesus commissioned his disciples to “go . . .
and teach all nations” and in connection with this commission he
promised: “Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the END of the world
[aion - age]” (Mt. 28:19,20).
According to this, how long will the church be in the world
fulfilling this divine commission? The answer is that the church
will remain in the world until the END of the age. Surely his
promise to be with the church until the END of the age would be
strange if it is his plan to remove the church seven years before
that time! If, when the end of the age comes, the church would no
longer be on earth, a promise such as this would be meaningless.
Earlier in the book of Matthew, Jesus made it very clear that the
righteous would not be separated from the wicked until the end of
the age.
Jesus spoke a parable about “a man which sowed good seed in his
field” and while men slept “his enemy came and sowed tares among the
wheat.” When the crop had grown, the servants discovered what had
happened. “So the servants of the householder came and said . . .
Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest
while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.
Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest
I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and
bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my
barn” (Mt. 13:24-30).
We are not left to speculate as to the proper meaning of this
parable, for Jesus himself gave the interpretation. The “good seed”,
the wheat, is sown by “the Son of man” -- Jesus Christ. The tares,
“the children of the wicked one”, are sown by the enemy -- “the
devil.” They are sown in the same field -- “the world” where both
grow together until the harvest. And when will this be? “The harvest
is the END OF THE WORLD” (Verses 37-39).
“As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so
shall it be in THE END OF THIS WORLD. The Son of man shall send
forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all
things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them
into a furnace of fire . . . THEN shall the righteous shine forth as
the sun in the kingdom of their Father” (verses 40-43). Plainly, the
time of separation between those which do iniquity and the righteous
is at the END of this age!
Jesus said that “BOTH” would grow “TOGETHER” until the “END OF THE
WORLD” -- and THEN the harvest would occur, producing the great
separation. This is the Bible teaching. But the pre-tribulation
rapture position, to be consistent, would have to say that BOTH will
NOT grow together in the field until the end of the world, for they
teach that the wheat portion will be harvested sooner, being
separated from the wicked seven years BEFORE the end of the world!!
In other words, instead of teaching that the separation of the wheat
and the tares will be “at the end of the world”, those who hold the
secret rapture position say that the wheat will be gathered FIRST,
and then seven years later the tares will be rooted out. This is the
point that C. I. Scofield attempts to make in his footnote on page
1016 of the Scofield Reference Bible: “At the end of this age (v.
40) the tares are set apart for burning, but FIRST the wheat is
gathered into the barn.” But if anything might be implied as coming
“first”, it would be the judgment upon the wicked, for in the
parable portion it said: “Gather ye together FIRST the tares” for
destruction, “but gather the wheat into my barn” (Mt. 13:30).
What? The scripture says: “First the tares.” Scofield says just the
opposite! He says: “First the wheat is gathered.” Such direct
contradiction to what the Bible itself says, ought to be enough to
made any Christian suspicious of the system of prophetic
interpretation that had been incorporated into the notes of the
Scofield Bible! And such twisting of terms to uphold a theory ought
to immediately make us to see how weak the teaching of a rapture
seven years before the end of the age really is!
We repeat: according to Jesus, the righteous and the wicked will
both be in the world until the harvest -- the end of the world! And
if the great separation is not until the end of the world, the idea
of the church being removed from the earth seven years before that
time is an impossibility.
Looking further in Matthew 13, we find another parable and its
interpretation which stresses the end of the world as the time of
great separation. Jesus likened the kingdom to a net which was cast
into the sea. It gathered fish of every kind -- some good, and some
bad. Finally, the good were placed into vessels and the bad were
cast away. And when, according to the interpretation that Jesus
gave, will this great separation occur? “So shall it be at the END
of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from
among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire” (Mt.
13:47-50).
We see, then, that the parable of the wheat and tares (as well as
the parable of the good and bad fish), both clearly pinpoint the
time of separation as the end of the world. It should also be noted
that the time of this event is based on the words that Jesus gave in
explaining these parables. This is important, for doctrine must
always be based upon the clear statements, not upon symbolical or
parabolic expressions which might be capable of several meanings.
According to Jesus, at the end of the world, those that belong to
him will be spared, while destruction shall fall upon the wicked.
Jesus further likened this time to the days of Lot. “As it was In
the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold,
they planted, they builded” -- those common, routine things that
people have been doing all along, not expecting any catastrophe --
“But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and
brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be
in the day when the Son of man is revealed” (Luke 17:28-30).
Even as Lot, the believer, was spared and all the unbelievers of
Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed, so when Christ returns, believers
will be spared (caught up to meet the Lord in the air!) while that
“same day” fiery destruction shall fall upon the unbelieving.
Needless to say, this passage does NOT say that Lot went out of
Sodom and then seven years later the fiery destruction fell upon
them! No, it says these things happened the same day.
Jesus also likened his Second Coming to the destruction of the flood
in the days of Noah. “But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the
coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the
flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage
. . . and knew not until the flood came, and took them all away [or,
as Luke’s account says, “destroyed them all” -- Lk. 17:27]. SO shall
also the coming of the Son of man be. Then shall two be in the
field; the one shall be taken and the other left. Two women shall be
grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
Watch therefore, for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come” (Mt.
24:37-42).
When the flood came, Noah was spared and the unbelievers were
destroyed. That destruction produced a great separation. So shall it
be at the Second Coming of Christ. Christians will be caught up to
meet Christ; unbelievers will be destroyed.
Though the “world” was formerly destroyed by water, Peter points out
that the destruction the world now faces will be by fire. “The world
that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: but the
heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in
store, reserved unto fire” (2 Peter 3:6, 7).
Peter had personally heard Jesus give the promise: “I will come
again, and receive you unto myself” (John 14:3). Years passed and
apparently some began to scoff at this promise, saying: “Where is
the PROMISE of his coming?” To this Peter replied: “The Lord is not
slack concerning his PROMISE . . . the day of the Lord will come . .
.” (2 Peter 3:4-10). Let us now notice the way in which Peter said
this promise will be fulfilled: “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 . . .
all these things shall be dissolved.” (2 Peter 3:10, 11).5
Peter believed the coming of the Lord would be at the very end, when
the present “heavens and earth shall pass away”, the end of the age.
“Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved”, Peter
continues, “what manner of persons ought YE to be in all holy
conversation and godliness. LOOKING FOR and hasting unto the coming
of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be
dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?” (verses
11, 12). This day will bring destruction upon the unbelieving world
and deliverance for those who believe. But if believers were to be
taken out of the world seven years before the end, why would Peter
exhort them to be “looking for” the coming of the day of God in
which the heavens shall pass away? Surely he would not attempt to
encourage them by something that will happen at the END of the age,
if their real hope was an event to take place seven years earlier!
According to Peter, “the day of the Lord” which will come “as a
thief in the night” is the time when the heavens shall pass away and
the earth shall melt with fervent heat. And according to Paul, “the
day of the Lord” which “cometh as a thief in the night” (the same
expression) is the time of the RAPTURE:
“The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout then we
which are alive and remain shall be caught up . . . in the clouds,
to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Wherefore comfort one another with these words. But of the times and
seasons [when this shall happen], brethren, ye have no need that I
write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the
Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say,
Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as
travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape” (1
Thess. 4:16-5:3). The passage is all connected together.
A study of 2 Peter 3 with 1 Thessalonians 4-5 plainly reveals that
the “day of the Lord that cometh as a thief in the night” is the
time when Christ will descend from heaven with a shout, believers
will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air, destruction will fall
upon the unbelieving world and the present heavens and earth shall
pass away with a great noise.
Jesus also linked his Second Coming with the time when heaven and
earth shall pass away. “Heaven and earth shall pass away . . . But
of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven,
but my Father only . . . Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour
your Lord doth come.” This passage clearly refers to the time when
Christ will return and gather believers -- the time of which
“knoweth no man”, and for which we must “watch.” Did Jesus say this
would happen before a seven year tribulation period? No. Instead,
this passage points to the end of the age -- when heaven and earth
shall pass away -- as the time when Christ will return.
Even the ancient Job implied that the resurrection would not take
place until the heavens shall pass away -- the end of the age. “Man
dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is
he? . . . Man lieth down, and riseth not: TILL THE HEAVENS BE NO
MORE, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep” (Job
14:10-12; 19:26,27).
Expressions such as “till the heavens be no more”, “the heavens
shall pass away with a great noise”, “heaven and earth shall pass
away”, and similar expressions all seem to indicate the very end of
things as we know them now -- the end of the age! Until that time,
the dead shall not be resurrected. This conclusion is also seen in
the scriptures which say the resurrection will occur at the LAST
DAY.
Martha, for example, believed her brother Lazarus would “rise again
in the resurrection AT THE LAST DAY” (John 11:24). And this belief
was not mere speculation on her part, for Jesus repeatedly taught
this truth. Jesus said that those who believe on him will be raised
up “AT THE LAST DAY” (John 6:39).
“And this is the will of him that sent me”, Jesus said, “that every
one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting
life: and I will raise him up AT THE LAST DAY . . . No man can come
to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will
raise him up AT THE LAST DAY” (John 6: 40, 44). And again he
repeated the words in verse 54: “I will raise him up AT THE LAST
DAY.”
With this evidence in mind, certain conclusions are apparent. Since
the catching up or rapture occurs at the same time as the
resurrection of the dead in Christ (1 Thess. 4:16, 17), it is plain
to see that the rapture will take place AT THE LAST DAY and not
seven years before the last day!
Not only do the scriptures about the resurrection “at the last day”
point to the end of the age as the time of Christ’s return, but the
same evidence can be seen from a study of the scriptural expression
“the last trump.”
Turning again to 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17, we read: “For the Lord
himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of
the archangel, and with the TRUMP of God: and the dead in Christ
shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught
up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air.”
Notice three things that are mentioned here: (1) the TRUMPET sounds,
(2) the RESURRECTION of the dead in Christ, and (3) the CATCHING UP
of believers to meet the Lord in the air.
Basically, these three things are also included in 1 Corinthians
15:51, 52: “Behold, I shew you a mystery; we shall not all sleep,
but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an
eye, at the last TRUMP: for the TRUMPET shall sound, and the dead
shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” Again we
have the following: (1) the TRUMPET sounds, (2) the RESURRECTION of
the dead in Christ, and (3) the living saints are CHANGED (which all
agree is when this mortal puts on immortality and believers rise to
meet the Lord in the air).
Both of these passages mention the sounding of the trumpet, but the
latter passage specifies that this trumpet is the LAST trumpet!
Bearing this in mind, we turn to Revelation 8:2 in which we read:
“And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were
given seven trumpets.” As each trumpet sounds, certain events take
place. There are seven of these trumpets, so the LAST trumpet (in
linking this passage with the others) would be the seventh.
Let us now notice what events are connected with the sounding of
this LAST trumpet: “And the seventh angel sounded; and there were
great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are
become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall
reign for ever and ever . . . 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” (Rev. 11:15-18).
Again, we notice the same three things that were included in the
other passages: (1) the TRUMPET sounds, the seventh, the last
trumpet, (2) the time of the dead to be raised -- the RESURRECTION,
and (3) the saints REWARDED, which would include their being changed
from mortal to immortality, caught up to meet the Lord, etc.
These things indicate that the rapture will be at the end of the
age, at the last day, at the last trump! But according to the
pre-tribulation rapture teaching, the rapture would have to take
place at the time of the FIRST trumpet or before, since -- according
to this interpretation -- the church will be gone when the trumpets
of Revelation are sounded! Revelation 11:18 says that the sounding
of the seventh trumpet -- the last trumpet -- will be “the tithe of
the dead” to be resurrected. God will then “give REWARD unto . . .
the saints.” Where, then, is there any room for the idea that before
any of these trumpets sound the saints will have already been
raptured to heaven to be rewarded?
In Matthew 16:27, Jesus explained when men will be rewarded. “The
Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels;
and THEN he shall reward every man according to his works:” But some
imply that it is not when Jesus comes with his angels that every man
is rewarded, for they say that before this -- at an earlier, quiet,
and secret coming -- believers will be raptured and rewarded!
Jesus made it clear that there will be no “secret” coming before his
coming in glory with the holy angels. “Whosoever therefore shall be
ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful
generation”, he said, “of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed,
when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels” (Mk.
8:38). In that day, Christ will be ashamed of some; of others, he
will not be ashamed. Some will be accepted; some will be rejected.
WHEN? “When he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy
angels”! It is agreed that the coming of Christ in glory with the
holy angels is at the end of the age, and this verse actually shows
that there will be no secret coming prior to this. Why? Because if
there had been a secret coming of Christ seven years before his
coming in glory with the angels, whether Christ would be ashamed of
people or not would have already taken place!
According to the Bible, no man knows the day or hour of the end of
the age (Mt. 24). But if the rapture is an event to take place seven
years before the end, thousands of people would be able to determine
the exact date! All they would have to do is count seven years from
the time that all babies and Christians suddenly came up “missing.”
If any questions remained, a trip to the cemetery would provide
absolute proof that the rapture had occurred. By digging down into
the graves of known Christians, it could quickly be determined that
the resurrection had taken place. It would not take long for
thousands to know what had happened -- and to figure the exact date
for the end of the age. But since the scriptures teach that no man
will know the day or hour when the end of the age will come, it is
evident that the rapture will not take place seven years before the
end.
The Christians at Thessalonica were enduring “persecutions and
tribulations” and were being “troubled” by unbelievers” (2 Thess.
1:4, 7). But Paul encouraged them with the truth that they would be
given “rest” from their troubles “when the Lord Jesus shall be
revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire taking
vengeance on them that know not God”, for “he shall come to be
glorified in his saints” (See 2 Thess. 1:7-10).
In this passage we notice -- as in the others -- that the reward of
the righteous and the destruction that shall befall the wicked are
interwoven with each other as to time, both occurring at the coming
of the Lord. We notice also that when Jesus comes for the
deliverance of his troubled saints, he comes in “flaming fire.” No
“secret” rapture here
When will the Lord render vengeance to the wicked on one hand and
comfort to the saints on the other? The answer is clear: “WHEN the
Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in
flaming fire, taking vengeance on them which know not God.” The time
of his being glorified in his saints is also the time when
destruction will fall on the wicked. There is no interval of seven
years between the two. It does not say that Christ will come to be
glorified in the saints and then come again a number of years later
to bring destruction upon their oppressors.
Notes
- Silver, The Lord’s Return, p. 260.
- Roberts, How to be Personally Prepared for the Second Coming
of Christ, p. 34.
- Ford, Seven Simple Sermons on the Second Coming, p. 51.
- Bishop, The Doctrine of Grace, p. 341.
- Some believe this passage refers to a literal destruction and
end of this planet. Others believe the expressions used here
indicate the end of the age, but not necessarily the end of the
planet. In Noah’s thy, it is pointed out, “the world that then
was . . . perished” -- but the planet remained; so likewise,
“the heavens and the earth which are now” -- this age -- will
come to its end, while the planet itself will remain. But it is
not our purpose here to set one of these arguments against the
other. For now we will simply point out that either way we take
this passage, it is evident that it could not be talking about a
time seven years before the end.
2. Will the
Return of Christ be in Two Stages?
When Jesus ascended into heaven and his disciples stood watching,
two angels said: “Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into
heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven,
shall so come IN LIKE MANNER as ye have SEEN him go into heaven”
(Acts 1:11). According to this verse, the same Jesus that those
disciples knew and loved will return “in like manner” as they saw
him go into heaven. They did not see him go into heaven in two
separate ascensions; and so it is definitely implied that his return
will not be in two separate comings.
“Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many” -- at his FIRST
coming -- “and unto them that look for him shall he appear the
SECOND time without sin unto salvation” (Heb. 9:28). Here we read of
the SECOND coming of Christ. Those who hold that Christ will return
for his church, and then return again seven years later, are
actually teaching a doctrine not only of the SECOND coming of
Christ, but a THIRD coming as well. However, the idea of a THIRD
coming of Christ is nowhere mentioned in the Bible. Such terminology
is completely foreign to the scriptures!
Some explain that they believe in one Second Coming of Christ, but
that it will be in “two stages.” However, this does not solve the
problem. If the rapture is a separate “stage” from the coming of
Christ in power and glory, how could each “stage” be the SECOND
coming? If they are separate and distinct events, each could not be
the second coming, for the coming that would follow the second,
would be the third!
Some teach there will be two second comings. But the scriptures
speak of the Lord’s second “coming” (singular), never of the second
“comingS” (plural). Besides, the term “two second comings” is in
itself contradictory.
In attempting to explain this difficulty which the dispensational
interpretation must face, we have actually heard it argued that the
“rapture” is not the COMING of the Lord! One writer puts it this
way: “Strictly speaking the rapture is NOT THE SECOND COMING AT ALL.
The second coming is the visible, local, bodily appearing of Christ
in the clouds of heaven as he returns to this earth . . . in power
and great glory.”1
Another says: “The thrilling event which will both mark the end of
the day of Grace and open the door for the Great Tribulation is the
rapture . . . Specifically speaking, THIS IS NOT THE SECOND COMING
OF CHRIST. Rather this is the rapture, or the catching up, of the
true church.”2
Another emphatically states that the rapture is NOT the Second
Coming and that “the scriptures referring to the rapture could not
refer to the second coming.” 3
According to these dispensational writers, the rapture will take
place first, and the COMING of Christ will take place seven years
later. But attempting to make the rapture a separate and earlier
event from the coming of Christ is a teaching that is contrary to
the united testimony of the Bible!
For example, Jesus said: “Be ye therefore also ready: for in such an
hour as ye think not the Son of man COMETH” (Mt. 24:44). Why would
Jesus warn about being ready for the COMING of the Son of man, if
really what we are to be ready for is a secret rapture to take place
seven years before his coming?
The same point can be seen in Revelation 16:15: “Behold, I COME as a
thief. Blessed is he that watcheth.” Why would such a warning be
given about his COMING, if seven years before his COMING believers
would already be taken to heaven?
Or notice Hebrews 10:36, 37: “For ye have need of patience, that,
after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
For yet a little while, and he that shall COME will COME, and will
not tarry.” Believers are thus exhorted to be patient until the
coming of Christ. But why point them to the coming of Christ if
their real hope was something to occur seven years earlier?
“Be patient then, brethren, unto the COMING of the Lord” (James
5:7). Again, why exhort the brethren to be patient unto the COMING
of the Lord, if a secret rapture before his coming was when they
would be gathered unto him?
Jesus said: “Occupy till I COME” (Lk. 19:13). But how could the
church occupy until he COMES, if the church will be taken away seven
years before his coming?
Paul speaks of Christians as “waiting for the COMING of our Lord
Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 1:7). If Paul believed Christians would be
caught up to heaven in a secret rapture seven years before the
Lord’s COMING, why didn’t he speak of Christians as waiting for
that? Why would he tell them to wait for something that would take
place seven years after they had already been raptured? Obviously,
to Paul, the coming of the Lord and the rapture were considered as
one and the same event.
Paul prayed that the Christians at Thessalonica would be “preserved
blameless unto the COMING of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess. 5:23).
Again, the event for which they were watching was the “coming” of
Christ. Why pray for them to be preserved blameless unto the
“coming” of Christ, if the “rapture” is an event that will take
place seven years before the Lord’s coming?
And finally, Jesus said: “I will COME again, and receive you unto
myself” (John 14:3). Plainly, it is when Jesus COMES that he
receives his people unto himself. It does not say he receives them
and then seven years later he comes. The receiving is not seven
years before his coming.
Such expressions as these we have given -- be ready for the coming
of the Lord, watch for his coming, be patient for his coming,
waiting for his coming, preserved unto his coming, occupy until he
comes, etc. -- all show that it is when Christ COMES that believers
are gathered to meet the Lord. In view of this, the concept that the
rapture is a separate event from the COMING of the Lord is simply
not true. The rapture of believers to meet the Lord in the air and
the coming of the Lord are one and the same event.
But what about the meaning of the Greek words that are used to
describe the Second Coming? Those who believe that Christ will
return in two separate phases, commonly teach that a study of the
original Greek makes this distinction clear. One writer, for
example, says: “The TWO phases of Christ’s second coming are clearly
distinguished in the Greek. The ‘parousia ’ . . . is His coming for
his saints . . . The ‘apokalupsis’ (the revealing, unveiling, making
manifest) is his coming with his saints.”4
But instead of the Greek terms used in describing the Second Coming
indicating two separate events, we find that these terms are used
interchangeably in such a way that they show there is but ONE Second
Coming of Christ -- not two!
The following is a list of six words that are used to describe the
Second Coming of Christ and the shades of meaning they present:
PAROUSIA. This word stresses the
actual personal presence of one who comes and arrives. It is used
in James 5:7: “Be patient . . . unto the coming of the Lord”, etc.
APOKALUPSIS. This word stresses
appearing, revelation. It is used in 2 Thess. 1:7: “The Lord shall
be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels”, etc.
EPIPHANEIA. This word means
manifestation and speaks of the glory that will attend Christ when
he comes. It is used in 1 Tim. 6:14: “The appearing of our Lord
Jesus Christ”, etc.
PHANEROO. This word means to
render apparent. It is used in 1 John 3:2: “When he shall appear,
we shall be like him.”
ERCHOMAI. This word indicates
the act of coming, to come from one place to another. It is used
in Luke 19:13: “Occupy till I come,” etc.
HEKO. This word stresses the
point of arrival, as I am come and am here. It is used in Rev.
2:25: “Hold fast till I come.”
The first word on our list, parousia, is the one most commonly used
in reference to the Lord’s coming. The word stresses the actual
personal presence of one that has come and arrived. There is nothing
in this word to convey the idea of secrecy. Paul, for example, was
comforted by the “coming [parousia] of Titus” who brought word to
him from the Corinthian Christians (2 Cor. 7:6). Likewise, he spoke
of the “coming [parousia] of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus”
(1 Cor. 16:17). In writing to the Philippians, Paul said he would be
“coming [parousia]” to see them again (Phil. 1:26).
Paul used this word in the noted “rapture” chapter which speaks of
“the coming [parousia] of the Lord” when the dead in Christ will be
raised and believers will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air
(1 Thess. 4:15-17). But was the parousia to be a pre-tribulation
coming? No! Turning to Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonian
believers, Paul again wrote about “the coming [parousia] of our
Lord” and “our gathering together unto him” (2 Thess. 2:1). Here he
explained that the “parousia” will not take place until AFTER the
man of sin is revealed and has carried out his evil work: “The Lord
shall destroy [the man of sin] with the brightness of his coming
[parousia]” (2 Thess. 2:8).
According to this, the coming (parousia) of the Lord, the
resurrection, and the rapture will come AFTER the reign of the man
of sin! -- not before.
In 2 Peter 3, we find more proof that the “parousia” is not a secret
coming that will take place BEFORE our Lord’s coming in flaming fire
and glory. According to Peter, “the promise of his coming
[parousia]” will be fulfilled when “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” (2
Peter 3:4-10). And in view of this, Christians are exhorted to be
“looking for . . . the coming [parousia] of the thy of God, wherein
the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall
melt with fervent heat” (verses 11, 12). The word “parousia” in
these places obviously cannot refer to a secret rapture seven years
before the end.
Instead of the RAPTURE being a secret and invisible coming to be
followed later by the REVELATION, an open and visible coming, the
scriptures show that the rapture and the revelation are one and the
same event -- not two.
The word that is translated “revelation” in connection with Christ’s
return is apokalupsis which stresses appearing, revelation. Notice
its use in 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10: “The Lord Jesus shall be REVEALED
[apokalupsis] from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire
taking vengeance on them that know not God . . . when he shall come
to be glorified in his saints.” According to this, the time when
Christ is REVEALED in flaming fire is also the time when he comes to
be glorified in his saints. If the rapture had taken place seven
years before this, the saints would have already been glorified!
Peter also spoke of the revelation of Christ in 1 Peter 1:13:
“Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the
end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the REVELATION
[apokalupsis] of Jesus Christ.” Again, it is evident that the
rapture is not an earlier event to take place seven years before the
“revelation.” If this had been the case, these instructions about
being sober and hoping until the REVELATION of Christ would be
meaningless. It would not be necessary for believers to hope to the
end for the grace to be brought to them at the REVELATION of Christ,
if -- in reality -- this grace was to be brought to them at a
separate rapture seven years before!
Likewise in verse 7, Peter spoke of Christians as being “found unto
praise and honour and glory at the APPEARING [the revelation, same
word, apokalupsis] of Jesus Christ.” But according to the secret
rapture position, Christians will have already been taken to heaven
and judged before the REVELATION! This is not what the Bible says.
Christians are pointed to the appearing or REVELATION of Christ, a
fact which clearly indicates that the rapture is the revelation!
The same word that is translated “revelation” and “appearing”
(apokalupsis) in the texts we have noticed, is used in 1 Cor. 1:7
which speaks of Christians as “waiting for the coming [apokalupsis]
of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Again it is apparent that the gathering
of believers (the rapture) is not something that precedes the
revelation of Christ. Why would Christians be waiting for the
“revelation” if the “rapture” comes seven years sooner?
We learn from these verses that the apokalupsis -- the REVELATION --
is when Christians will be gathered; this is when they meet the
Lord; this is the day for which they are waiting. The rapture is NOT
one event and the revelation a different event. Instead of two
phases being “clearly distinguished in the Greek” by the terms
parousia and apokalupsis, a study of these words and the context in
which they are used reveals no such distinction whatsoever. To the
contrary, both are used in a way that points us to ONE event, the
Second Coming of Christ at the end of the age!
Another word used in describing the return of Christ is EPIPHANEIA,
meaning “manifestation” and the glory that will attend our Lord when
he comes. This word is not applied to a “secret”, pre-tribulation
coming, for Christ will slay the man of sin “with the BRIGHTNESS
[epiphaneia] of his coming” (2 Thess.2 :8).
Bearing this in mind, let us look at 1 Timothy 6:14, 15 in which
this same word appears: “. . . keep this commandment without spot,
unrebukeable, until THE APPEARING (epiphaneia) of our Lord Jesus
Christ: which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and
only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords.”
Now we ask: why would Christians be exhorted to keep the commandment
until the “epiphaneia” -- the glorious appearing -- if seven years
before this there was to be a hidden, secret coming to take the
church out of the world? The epiphaneia is when the man of sin is
slain, it is when Christ comes in open glory and power, and it is
until this time that Christians are exhorted to remain faithful.
Such instructions would be completely out of place if Christians
were to be raptured several years before the epiphaneia.
The fourth word on our list is PHANEROO, meaning “to render
apparent”, which also refers to Christ’s coming in open power and
glory. “When the chief Shepherd shall APPEAR [phaneroo], ye shall
receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away” (1 Peter 5:4). This
verse does not say that when the chief shepherd shall appear -- be
rendered apparent -- that Christians will have already been raptured
and crowned! No, the rewarding is when Christ shall APPEAR, and not
at a supposed invisible coming seven years before!
John, like Peter, makes the same point: “We know that, when he shall
APPEAR (phaneroo), we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he
is.” (1 John 3:2). As Christians it is when Christ shall come and
appear -- be rendered apparent -- that we shall be like him, not at
a supposed invisible coming.
Instead of the Greek terms indicating two second comings, just the
opposite is the case. This should be carefully noted. We know that
the “parousia” is the same event as the “apokalupsis” (revelation),
not only by the actual context in which these words are used (as we
have seen), but by the way they are used interchangeably.
In Matthew 24:37, for example, we read: “But as the days of Noah
were, so shall also the COMING [parousia] of the son of man be.”
Luke’s account of the same passage says: “As it was in the days of
Noah . . . even thus shall it be in the day when the son of man is
REVEALED (apokalupsis)” (Lk. 17:26,30). This shows us that the
coming (parousia) of Christ and the revelation (apokalupsis) of
Christ are the same event!
Looking to Matthew 24 again, we find that “parousia” is used to
describe the same event as “erchomai.” “But as the days of Noah
were, so shall also the COMING (parousia) of the son of man be . . .
Therefore be ye also ready; for in such an hour as ye think not the
son of man COMETH (erchomai)” (Mt.24:37, 44).
“Erchomai”, in turn, is used to describe the same event as “heko”,
for in Hebrews 10:37, we read: “For yet a little while, and he that
shall COME [erchomai] will COME [heko], and will not tarry.”
“Heko” and “parousia” are used together by Peter. In answer to the
question: “Where is the promise of his COMING (parousia]?”, Peter
answers: “The day of the Lord will COME [heko] as a thief in the
night” (2 Peter 3:10).
The word “parousia” and “epiphaneia” are linked together in 2 Thess.
2:8 in which we read that the man of sin will be destroyed by the
“BRIGHTNESS” (epiphaneia) of Christ’s “COMING” (parousia).
And finally, we notice that the “parousia” is also the “phaneroo”,
for both expressions are used in the same verse, referring to the
same event: “And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he
shall APPEAR [phaneroo], we may have confidence, and not be ashamed
before him at his COMING [parousia].”
Thus we see that all of these Greek words are used interchangeably.
As in English, the different words present varied shades of meaning.
But trying to split the Second Coming of Christ into two “stages” or
“comings” on a supposed distinction in these Greek terms is
completely artificial.
Notes
- Boyd, Ages and Dispensations, p. 60.
- Orr, Antichrist, Armageddon, and the End of the World, p.9.
- Hall, Prophecy Marches On!, Vol.2, pp. 36, 39.
- Sabiers, Where are the Dead?, pp. 123, 124.
3. Coming “For”
and Coming “With” the Saints
According to the dispensational interpretation, Christ will come in
a secret rapture “FOR his saints”, take them to heaven for seven
years, and then come “WITH the saints.” The argument is, of course,
that since he will come with his saints, he will have to come at an
earlier time for the saints. But let us take a closer look at this
argument. First of all, does the Bible anywhere use the expression
“coming FOR the saints”?
Repeatedly we have heard statements like this: “Jesus is coming back
FOR a church without spot and wrinkle”, or “Soon Jesus will return
FOR his church to take it out of this world”, or “The Lord comes in
the rapture FOR his church; after the Tribulation period, he comes
with his church”, etc. But the fact is: the Bible never uses the
expression, “coming FOR the saints.” Never. Surely then, an
interpretation that continually uses an expression that the Bible
never uses should be subjected to close examination.
Once a person has the concept in mind that there will be a special
coming of Christ “for” the church, he then reads about believers
being “caught up” and immediately concludes that they will be caught
up to heaven. This is not what the passage says at all!
The rapture passage, 1 Thess. 4:16, 17, says that believers will be
“caught up . . . in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air.” This
verse explains WHERE believers will meet the Lord. The place of
meeting will be just above the earth -- in the clouds, in the air.
There is nothing in this verse to indicate that Christ will then
turn around and take the church to heaven.
Notice that believers will rise to “MEET” the Lord. The word that is
here translated “meet” is a word that was used in reference to the
coming of a king or governor to visit a city. As he approached, the
citizens would go out to meet him and then escort him on the last
part of his journey into the city. We believe it has precisely that
same meaning here. As the Lord descends from heaven, believers will
rise “to meet the Lord in the air”, in order to come with him as he
continues to earth.1
The word “meet” in this verse is apantesis. It is used in two other
passages which we will now consider to see exactly how this word was
used in the scriptures:
First: Matthew 25:1,6: “Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened
unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to MEET the
bridegroom . . . And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the
bridegroom cometh; go ye out to MEET him.” In this parable, the five
wise and the five foolish virgins were to take their lamps and go
out to meet the bridegroom. What for? To have him turn around and
take them to where he had come from? No! If this had been the case,
he would have been coming to meet them, instead of them going out to
meet him.
The plain and simp1e truth is that when the bridegroom approached,
they went out to meet him so as to escort him back to where they had
been waiting -- to the place where the marriage would be held. They
went out to “meet” him and after meeting him returned “with him.”
Notice how the word “meet” was used.
Second: Acts 28:14-16: “And so we went toward Rome. And from thence,
when the brethren heard of us, they came to MEET us as far as Appii
forum, and The three taverns. . . And when we came to Rome . . .”
Here the same point is seen. As Paul journeyed to Rome, certain
brethren came to meet him and then accompanied him as he entered the
city. It does not say that Paul got almost to Rome and then took
these brethren back to where he had been. Again, if this had been
the case, he would have been coming to meet them, instead of them
going out to meet him!
Let us suppose these men that met Paul had explained to the others
where they were going. They might have said: “We have heard that the
apostle Paul is coming to our city. We are going to meet him and
will come with him.” Would any have understood this to mean that
they would “meet” Paul; go back to where he had been, spend some
time there, so as to finally come “with” him to Rome? No, none would
ever get such a meaning from a statement as this. Yet this is
exactly the kind of “proof” that is offered for the idea of two
second comings of Christ. We are told that since the saints will
come “with” Christ, that in going out to “meet” him they must be
taken back to where he was, wait there for a period of time, so as
to come “with” him!
In the scriptural examples, people went out to “meet” someone and
then escorted that person to the place where he was Coming. In no
case are two stages, or two comings, implied by this word. There is
no room for a period of seven years between the going out to “meet”
the one that is coming and the coming “with” that person.
Seeing, then, how the word “meet” is used in the scriptures, we
understand that when Christ comes, believers will be “caught up . .
. to meet the Lord in the air” and from there they will descend
“with him.” So the fact that the Lord will come with his saints
(after they rise to “meet” him) does not in any way require two
separate second comings of Christ. “That theory must be deliberately
read into the passage”, writes Oswald Smith, “We might go through
all the writers of the New Testament, and we would fail to discover
any indication of the so-called ‘two-stages’ of our Lord’s coming.”2
We turn now to Jude 14, the key verse which speaks of the Lord as
coming WITH his saints. There are good reasons for believing that
those who are here mentioned as coming with the Lord are ANGELS, not
men! If this is true, then the argument that there must be a
separate coming for the saints (since Christ will come with the
saints) is left without any foundation whatsoever. Let us then take
a closer look at this verse.
“Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints” (Jude
14). The word that is translated saints is “hagios” which means
simply “holy”, or in this case, “holy [ones].” (The word “holy” that
appears many times in the New Testament, with only a few exceptions,
is always translated from this word.) There is absolutely nothing in
this word itself to indicate who these holy ones are. The term could
refer to either men or angels, depending on the context. In this
case, we believe the reference is to angels. The Pulpit Commentary
says: “The ‘ten thousands of his saints’ is better rendered ‘ten
thousands of his holy ones’ . . . For the ‘holy ones’ here intended
are the angels.”3
Jesus himself taught that he would come with the holy angels. The
word “holy” that he used in connection with the angels is “hagios”,
the same word that is used in Jude 14. “The Son of man shall come in
his glory, and all the holy [hagios] angels with him . . .” (Mt.
25:31). Jesus also said: “Whosoever shall be ashamed of me . . . of
him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh . . . with
the holy [hagios] angels” (Mk. 8:38; Lk. 9:26). According to these
words of Jesus, the “holy ones” (hagios) that will come with him are
the angels.
The expression “ten thousands of saints” (used in Jude 14) also
appears in Deuteronomy 33:2 in a passage which is generally regarded
as referring to angels: “The Lord came from Sinai, and rose up from
Seir unto them; he shined forth from mount Paran, and he came with
ten thousands of saints.” Concerning this passage, the Pulpit
Commentary points out that a better translation would be “ten
thousands of holy ones”, for the reference is to “myriads of angels”
and that the Lord came forth from among them to manifest himself to
the people.4
The Matthew Henry Commentary says: “His appearance was glorious: he
shone forth like the sun when he goes forth in his Strength. Even
Seir and Paran, two mountains at some distance, were illuminated by
the divine glory which appeared on Mount Sinai . . . He came with
his holy myriads . . . the angels . . . Hence the law is said to be
given by the disposition of angels, Acts 7:53; Heb. 2:2.”5
If the expression “ten thousands of saints” referred to angelic
beings in Deuteronomy, it is surely not inconsistent to believe that
the same expression could refer to angelic beings in Jude 14.
Looking again at the passage in Jude, would the context suggest that
the “holy ones” that accompany the Lord at his Second Coming could
be angels? We believe this is implied, for these “holy ones” are
associated with Christ in executing judgment upon the ungodly.
“Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his hagios [holy
ones], to execute judgment upon . . . all that are ungodly” (Jude
14, 15). We believe this will be the job of angelic beings that will
come with Christ, not that of the Christians. Other scriptures make
this plain.
Jesus, for example, likened the ungodly to “tares” that are gathered
and burned in the fire. So, likewise, in the end of the age, “the
Son of man shall send forth his ANGELS” who will cast the ungodly
into the fire (Mt. 13:40-42). This is also pointed out in verses 49,
50 of this same chapter: “At the end of the world . . . the ANGELS
shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and
shall cast them into the furnace of fire.” And Paul says: “The Lord
Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty ANGELS, in
flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God” (2 Thess.
1:7).
To sum it up then, Jude 14 speaks of the Lord’s coming with his holy
ones. That the reference is to angels in this instance (and not men)
is indicated by the words of Jesus when he used the same term in
connection with the angels that will accompany him at his coming.
The expression “ten thousands of saints” when used in Deuteronomy
had reference to angels. And the context in Jude shows that these
beings are associated with the Lord in executing flaming judgment
upon the ungodly. These things all Imply that the reference is to
angels that will come with Christ when he returns. However, as we
mentioned earlier, our general argument -- that there is one Second
Coming of Christ (not two) -- is not dependent upon this point.
One final New Testament reference remains to be considered in which
we read of Christ’s coming with the saints. Paul exhorted the
Thessalonians: “Increase and abound in love one toward another, and
toward all men . . . [so that the Lord] may stablish your heart
unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming
of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints” (1 Thess. 3:12, 13).
We need only to notice this passage briefly, for it is doubtful if
any would attempt to use this verse as a proof text for the idea of
a coming for the saints as contrasted to a coming with the saints at
a later date. There are several reasons for this. The word
translated “coming” in this verse is parousia -- a word which
dispensationalists commonly say refers to a “secret” rapture -- a
coming for the saints -- whereas in this verse, we read of his
“coming [parousia] with all the saints.” Instead of teaching two
second comings of Christ, if anything, this verse would indicate
that the parousia is the coming of Christ with his saints.
Paul is obviously not speaking of a coming of Christ “WITH all the
saints” as contrasted to an earlier coming FOR the saints, for if
there was to be an earlier coming, why would he put stress on their
being established in holiness at the coming of Christ with all his
saints? Surely he would have mentioned the earlier coming if such
existed.
In all probability, the meaning intended in this passage is simply
that Paul desired the Thessalonians to be established in the faith
and be found unblameable at the Second Coming -- along with all the
other saints -- those at Corinth, Colossea, Ephesus, and all
believers everywhere.
In any event, there is no basis in this passage (or in the others we
have noticed) for the idea of two second comings of Christ; if
anything, just the opposite is implied all the way through.
Notes
- When Jesus was on earth, he said: “I will come again.”
Plainly, Christ will return to earth. Whether the earth as we
know it now (as some teach), or the earth made new (as others
teach) is not the point at present. The fact is, he will come to
earth. The saints will not remain forever floating around in
space.
- Smith, Tribulation or Rapture -- Which? p.10.
- Volume 22, p. 12.
- Volume 3, p.534.
- Volume 1, p.874. cf. Job 15:15; Ps. 89:5, 7; Dan. 8:13; 4:13.
4. An Examimation
of Dispensational Proof Texts
We shall now examine the verses that are commonly used in support of
the pre-tribulation rapture position.
First, Revelation 4:1: “After this I [John] looked, and, behold, a
door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as
it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither,
and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.”
Those who hold the “secret” rapture teaching, generally believe that
the seven churches mentioned in Revelation, chapters two and three,
represent seven ages of the church -- beginning with the church of
the first century and continuing until the rapture. Since chapters 4
through 18 do not mention the word “church”, this is taken as proof
that the church will be absent from the earth during this time. The
verse that follows the third chapter (Rev. 4:1) tells how John in
vision was taken up to heaven and saw certain things. John is used
as a type of the church and this verse is then taken to mean that
the church will be raptured at this same point -- before the events
of the chapters that follow! And since John was told he would see
things that would be “hereafter”, this is taken to mean that the
chapters that follow describe things which will take place “after”
the church is gone!
But trying to apply Revelation 4:1 to the rapture is based only on
assumptions, not plain statements. First, it is assumed that the
seven churches of Revelation 2 and 3 represent seven ages of the
church -- from the first century to the rapture. Second, it is
assumed -- since the word “church” does not appear in the chapters
that follow chapter three -- that the church at this point is taken
out of the world in a secret rapture. Third, it is assumed that not
only the seven churches of Asia represent the church, but that John
himself is also a type of the church, for it is taught that his
being caught up to heaven pictures the rapture of the church. And
finally, it is assumed that since John saw things which would be
“hereafter” that this means after the church is gone. But now, step
by step, we will take a closer look at these points.
1. Do the seven churches of Asia represent seven church ages -- from
apostolic days to the rapture? Since these seven churches with their
varied spiritual conditions existed together in Asia during the
first century, we see no special reason to believe that seven
contemporary churches should represent seven successive ages of the
church. We believe the lessons contained in the letters to the seven
churches could apply to churches in similar situations in any
century.
2. Next, it is claimed that since the word “church” does not appear
in Revelation, chapters 4-18, we are to understand that the church
is absent from the earth during this time, not coming into the
picture again until chapter 19 in which we read of the marriage
supper and the coming of Christ as King of kings.
But if the mere absence of the word “church” can prove that the
church is absent in chapters 4-18, we would have to conclude that
the church is also absent in chapter 19, for the word “church”
appears nowhere in the entire chapter! Nor does the word “church”
appear in chapter 20! It is not found in chapter 21! Would any
contend that the church is absent in these chapters? It is not until
the last chapter of Revelation that we find the term again, and that
only in a closing remark: “I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify
unto you these things in the churches” (Rev. 22:16).
The church is not mentioned in chapters 4-18, we are told, and this
is taken as proof that the church is in heaven during this time.
What? If the church is not mentioned, how could this prove it is in
heaven? Since the church is clearly on earth in chapters two and
three, and since it is not expressly referred to as being in heaven
during the chapters that follow, the more natural inference would be
that it is still on earth during these chapters. One thing is for
sure: if the church is not mentioned in these chapters, there is no
proof it is in heaven during this time!
We are told that the church is not mentioned in the chapters after
Revelation 3:22. But technically, the church (as a whole) is not
mentioned in the chapters before Revelation 3:22! Instead, all of
the references are to local assemblies, local churches in Asia, each
being but a part of that great universal church of God. Here are the
facts: the words “church” (singular) and “churches” (plural) occur
19 times in Revelation 1-3. The four references in chapter one are
about “the seven churches in Asia.” The word “church” is used in
each of the addresses to the seven churches: “To the angel of the
church in Ephesus”, etc. and at the conclusion of each of the
letters: “Hear . . . what the Spirit saith to the churches.” In
Revelation 2:22, “To all the churches”, refers to all seven of the
churches mentioned. Thus the word is never used in these chapters as
referring to the church in its totality. This is significant.
While it is true the word “church” does not appear after chapter
three until the last part of Revelation, we believe the church is
definitely referred to by other terms that are used in these
chapters. Take Revelation 13:7, for example. “And it was given unto
him [the beast] to make war with the SAINTS.” Is not this a clear
reference to the church? Revelation 13:10 mentions the “patience and
faith of the SAINTS” -- patience and faith in the midst of
persecution! The “SAINTS” are again mentioned in chapter 16:6. In
chapter 17, we read about the Babylonian woman “drunken with the
blood of the SAINTS” (verse 6) and that “In her was found the blood
of the SAINTS” (18:24). Here, then, are several references to the
saints; that is, those who make up the church.
But those who believe the rapture is pictured in Revelation 4:1,
commonly teach that the “saints” in these chapters are not church
saints, but tribulation saints -- people that are no part of the
church whatsoever! Yet when we find the word “saints” in connection
with the marriage supper of the Lamb in chapter 19, then we are told
this refers to the church! Notice the passage:
“The marriage of the Lamb is come,
and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that
she should be arrayed In fine linen, clean and white: for the fine
linen is the righteousness of SAINTS.”
The Scofield footnote says: “The ‘Lamb’s wife’ here is the ‘bride’,
the Church.”1 So it is agreed the saints here referred to
are church saints. But to be consistent, if the “saints” In
Revelation 19 are church saints, how can some rightly argue that the
“saints” mentioned in the chapter before (chapter 18), the chapter
before that (chapter 17), the chapter before that (chapter 16), and
chapter 13 are some different kind of saints? By such arbitrary
methods of interpretation, anything could be proved from the Bible!
3. Assuming that the churches of Revelation 2 and 3 represent seven
church ages, coupled with the idea that the word “church” does not
appear in certain chapters that follow, Revelation 4:1 is then taken
as a reference to the rapture -- assuming that John is a type of the
church! Let us look at the verse again: “After this I [John] looked,
and behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I
heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come
up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.”
Though this verse was plainly a message to John, many dispensational
writers feel this verse clearly refers to the rapture!
Scofield, for example, says: “This call seems clearly to indicate
the fulfillment of 1 Thess. 4:14-17 [the rapture].2 The
word ‘church’ does not again occur in the Revelation till all is
fulfilled.” And De Haan says: “This brief passage from Revelation is
one of the shortest yet one of the clearest pictures in Scripture of
the rapture of the church.”3
But this verse is not talking about the rapture, it is not talking
about the church, it is talking about JOHN! It was John who was --
in spirit -- taken into the heavenly realm and saw various things
which would come to pass. John being thus taken up does not prove we
should look for the church in heaven any more than his being taken
in the spirit into the wilderness to “Babylon”, would prove the
church was there! (Rev. 17:3-5).
Those who claim to “clearly” see a pre-tribulation rapture of the
church in this verse must assume (among other things) that John is a
type of the church. But John could not be a consistent type of the
church in heaven during the period covered by chapters 4-18, for
sometimes during those chapters he is represented as being back on
EARTH! In Revelation 10:1 and also 18:1, for example, he sees an
angel “come [not go] down from heaven” -- wording which would place
him below heaven in these scenes. In Revelation 11:1, in vision, he
measures the “temple”, which apparently does not symbolize something
in heaven, for it is pictured as having a court which is given to
the “Gentiles” to tread down. Then in Revelation 13:1, John is
standing upon the sand of the sea, and a beast rising up out of the
water appears, etc. John is sometimes pictured as being in heaven
and sometimes on earth. He cannot, therefore, be a consistent
representation of the church in heaven during these chapters.
4. Adding to the foregoing dispensational teachings (that the seven
churches represent seven ages of the church until the rapture, that
the word “church” does not appear after chapter three, and that John
is representative of the church in being taken up to heaven at
Revelation 4:1), a final point is made in the attempt to establish a
pre-tribulation rapture from the verse under consideration. We are
told that when the voice spoke to John and said: “Come up hither,
and I will shew thee things which must be HEREAFTER”, that the
expression “hereafter” means AFTER the church has been raptured to
heaven!
But the fact is, the same words in the Greek -- “meta tauta” -- that
are translated “hereafter” at the end of this verse, are exactly the
same words that are rendered “after this” at the beginning of the
verse. The verse begins and ends with the same identical phrase in
the original. Is it not inconsistent, then, to attempt to make it
mean “after the church” in one instance and not in the other? And to
make it mean “after the church” in both instances would be
contradictory.
The normal reading of the passage is simply that John had received
specific messages to the seven churches in Asia; after this he heard
a voice saying he would be shown things which would be hereafter --
that is, he would be shown events that were then future. It is
inexcusable to try to make it mean anything more than this, for this
same expression was commonly used by John. “Meta tauta”, though
translated in various ways into English, appears in the following
verses in John’s writings: “hereafter” (John 13:7; Rev. 1:19; 4:1;
9:12); “after these things” (John 3:22; 6:1; 7:1; Rev. 7:1; 18:1;
19:1); “afterward” (John 5:14); “after that” (Rev. 15:5; 20:3);
“after this” (John 5:1; Rev. 4:1). To try to force a meaning upon
the expression in one instance that is completely unheard of and
unrelated to the use of the word in other parts of John’s writings
is, we feel, very unsound.
Another dispensational “proof text” is found in the words of Jesus
to the church at Philadelphia: “Because thou hast kept the word of
my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation,
which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the
earth” (Rev. 3:10).
Those who use this verse in defense of the secret rapture position,
assume that it is talking about a great tribulation period at the
end of this age. There is no scriptural proof for this. Then it is
assumed that since these are to be kept from the hour of temptation,
that this means they will be raptured clear out of the world in
order for this to be fulfilled. But, again, the text does not say
this.
1. Let us consider this verse in its primary application -- as it
pertained to the church of Philadelphia, located in Asia Minor, In
the first century. Was this church kept from a world wide time of
temptation? As sure as the promise is true, they were. How were they
kept? By being raptured to heaven? There is nothing to infer this.
We believe they were kept by the power and grace of God.
If God fulfilled his promise to them, then the “hour of temptation”
-- what ever might be meant by the expression -- must have occurred
in their day. If so, it is evident that this verse offers no proof
for a secret rapture to escape a great tribulation period 2,000
years later.
2. Let us consider Revelation 3:10 as it would apply with the
teaching that the seven churches of Asia represent seven church
ages. In this case, the passage again falls short of proving there
will be an escape rapture from a tribulation during the last years
this age. Had this been the case, Revelation 3:10 should have been
given to the last church of the seven. But the promise of being
“kept from the hour of temptation” was addressed to the sixth
church.
Here, again, we see inconsistency in the secret rapture teaching.
When it is being stressed that Revelation 4:1 teaches the secret
rapture, we are told that the seven churches represent seven
successive ages of the church, and that the last church age, the
seventh, will end with the rapture. Then later, when commenting on
Revelation 3:10, this is contradicted by saying that the message to
the sixth church refers to an escape for the church at the end of
the church age -- as though the sixth church was the last church! In
other words, when commenting on Revelation 4:1, the church ages are
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. Then later, in order to apply Revelation 3:10
to a pre-tribulation rapture, the ages would have to be twisted
around like this: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ,7, 6, or, at least, the last two
very arbitrarily merged together (as in the note on page 1332 of the
Scofield Reference Bible).
Since the church in any century can benefit from the letters to the
seven churches, let us view Revelation 3:10 as setting forth truth
that could apply to the church in any century in which the same
conditions exist. This will be a more general application.
3. It is a recognized method of Biblical interpretation to consider
other verses that might shed light on a subject. We will apply this
rule here and compare a verse that also contains the words of Jesus
and one that was recorded by the same disciple. In both verses we
will find basically the same wording and the same type of promise.
But in the one -- and this is significant! -- it is plainly shown
that believers can be kept from the temptation or evil of this world
without being taken out of the world! We ask the reader to carefully
compare the following passages:
“Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep
thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the
world, to try them that dwell upon the earth” (Rev. 3:10).
“They have kept thy word . . . I pray not that thou shouldest take
them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the
evil” (John 17:6, 15).
In both passages, the people referred to have kept the word. And
because they have kept the word, God will “keep them.” In the one
passage, they are kept from the hour of temptation; in the other,
they are kept from evil. The fact that they are kept from temptation
in the one verse and kept from evil in the other, does not
materially change the meaning involved, for evil and temptation are
very closely related words. Jesus, for example, taught the disciples
to pray: “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil
“(Mt. 6:13). If we are kept from temptation, then surely we are kept
from evil. The two go hand in hand.
Both of the passages we are comparing use the expression “keep from”
in English, and in the Greek both use the same basic words. In both
passages, believers are “kept from” evil or temptation, the one
expressly explaining that this would be accomplished without them
being taken out of the world -- the exact opposite of the secret
rapture teaching!
If it is possible to be in the world and yet be “kept from” the evil
of the world, is it not also possible to be “kept from” the hour of
temptation without being taken out of the world?
The fact that Revelation 3:10 mentions God’s keeping power at the
“hour of temptation” is no reason to insist that by “hour” a seven
year period of time is meant. In another passage, Jesus spoke about
those which have no root “which, for a while believe, and in time of
temptation fall away” (Lk. 8:13). Whether we use the term “time of
temptation” or “hour of temptation”, it is the time when temptation
becomes great, it is that hour when people are especially tested.
Applying it in the general sense, it might be in any century, any
year, any day -- not just the last seven years of this age.
It was such an hour of stress and test when Jesus was about to be
betrayed and the disciples slept. Jesus said, “What, could ye not
watch with me one hour? Watch and pray, that ye enter not into
temptation” (Mt. 26:40-45). In that hour of temptation, they needed
to pray. In prayer they could have received the necessary power to
be “kept from” the temptation of that crisis hour.
Revelation 3:10 speaks about being kept from the hour of temptation
“which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon
the earth.” Paul also spoke of temptation as being common to all men
-- but with special promise to the believer! “There hath no
temptation taken you but such as is common to man, but God . . .
will not suffer you [the believer] to be TEMPTED above that ye are
able; but will with the temptation also make a way of escape that ye
may be able to bear it” (1 Cor. 10:12, 13).
Here, then, is another reference about mankind being tempted, but
that through Christ we can be kept from falling into temptation --
because he makes a way of ESCAPE! Believers -- here and now --
escape from temptation without being raptured out of this world!
“The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of TEMPTATIONS” (2
Peter 2:9). He has been doing it for centuries.
We believe that Revelation 3:10 stresses God’s KEEPING power. “I
will keep thee from the hour of temptation”, he promises. Other
verses also speak of God’s keeping power, but none Imply a rapture
out of this world. Jabez prayed: “KEEP me from evil . . . and God
granted him that which he requested” (1 Chron. 4:10). And we, today,
can also be “KEPT by the power of God through faith unto salvation”
(1 Peter 1:5), for God “is able to KEEP you from falling” (Jude 24),
etc.
Thus by a study of the key words in the text under consideration, we
find that believers can be “kept from” the world’s evil or
temptation, can be “delivered out of temptation”, can find “a way of
escape”, without being taken out of this world.
Some attempt to teach that the church will be taken out of the world
because Revelation 3:10 mentions temptation that will “try them that
DWELL upon the earth.” It is taught that those who “dwell” upon the
earth are those who choose earth as a permanent abode, as compared
to the Christians who have spiritual objectives. But this conclusion
will not stand up, for in the original, the same word is used in
describing our Lord DWELLING in Capernaum! (Mt. 4:13). None suppose
that Jesus felt Capernaum was his permanent dwelling!
The three applications we have made of Revelation 3:10, summed up,
are as follows:
Applied SPECIFICALLY to the Philadelphian church in Asia of
the first century, it would have had its fulfillment while those
people were still living.
Applied to the seven church AGES teaching, it falls short of
reaching the last church age, which would be the seventh, for
the Philadelphian church was the sixth in the succession.
Applied as a GENERAL truth for the church in any century, it
could not be limited to people living just prior to the last
seven years of the age, but would be a promise of God’s
“keeping” power in any hour of temptation.
While a verse like Revelation 3:10 might -- if taken alone --
provide a possible inference, all will admit that true doctrine must
be based on plain statements, not inferences.
One more text should be noticed here: “Watch ye therefore and pray
always, that ye may be accounted worthy to ESCAPE all these things
that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man” (Luke
21:36).
It is true that this verse speaks of “escape”, but it says nothing
about the church being taken to heaven in a secret rapture in order
for this escape to be accomplished! This should be especially noted,
for this is the very thing that some have attempted to read into
this passage.
In this verse, Jesus said to his disciples: “PRAY always, that ye
may be accounted worthy to escape . . .” How? By a secret rapture to
take them to heaven seven years before the end of the age?
Apparently not, for in the prayer that Jesus himself prayed, we
read: “I PRAY NOT that thou shouldest take them out of the world,
but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil” (John 17:15). Would
Jesus pray one way and then tell his disciples to pray another way?
Surely this would be contradictory.
With what is this word “escape” to be connected? Is it a reference
to escaping a period of time -- a dispensational great tribulation
during the last seven years of this age? It does not say so. A look
at the context shows that the reference is to “THAT DAY”, the time
believers shall be gathered to meet Christ in the air and
destruction shall fall upon the world -- the end of the age.
“Heaven and earth shall pass away [the end of this age] . . . take
heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be over-charged
with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so
THAT DAY come upon you unawares.” [Obviously it could not come upon
them unawares if they were to be raptured out seven years before the
end of the age!]. “For as a snare shall it come on all them that
dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray
always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things
that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man” (Lk.
21:33-36).
We notice the reference is to THAT DAY. Escape is promised to those
who are prayerfully watching and not overcharged with eating and
drinking. Let us notice now that these same things were mentioned by
Paul. “THE DAY of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For
when they shall say, Peace and safety; then SUDDEN DESTRUCTION
cometh upon them as travail upon woman with child; and they shall
NOT ESCAPE. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness that THAT DAY
should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of the light
. . . we are not the night. . . Therefore let us not sleep, as do
others; but let us WATCH and be SOBER. For they that sleep sleep in
the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night” (l
Thess. 5:1-7).
Notice that this passage also mentions THAT DAY. It will bring
“sudden destruction” upon unbelievers “and they shall not escape.”
However, there will be those who will “escape” that sudden
destruction -- those who are sober, spiritually awake, and watching
for the return of Christ.
Matthew’s account (a parallel of Luke 21) also mentions THAT DAY and
that we must WATCH, for the time of this event is unrevealed. “For
as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and
drinking, marrying and giving in marriage... and knew not until the
flood came and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the
Son of man be” (Mt. 24:36-44).
When God’s destruction fell upon the world in Noah’s day, those who
heeded God’s message ESCAPED -- they were not destroyed with the
unbelieving world. According to the scriptures, destruction shall
again fall on the earth -- this time by fire -- and again those who
have heeded God’s message shall ESCAPE and not be destroyed with the
unbelieving world. Whether we think of the end that came in Noah’s
day or the end that shall come upon this world at Christ’s return,
in neither event is it a case of the righteous escaping from a seven
year tribulation period, but from the very destruction that brings
the end.
We have, then, the words recorded in Luke, in Matthew, and by the
apostle Paul regarding THAT DAY. All speak of the uncertainty of the
time. Luke records that it will come “as a snare.” Matthew likens it
to the days of Noah when “they knew not until the flood came” and
destruction fell upon the world. And Paul says it will come “as a
thief in the night”, a time when men will be saying “peace and
safety” -- not expecting sudden destruction to fall upon them.
All three of these passages give warnings against the eating and
drinking which would result in a condition of unconcern and
spiritual neglect. Luke speaks of “surfeiting and drunkenness”,
Matthew speaks of “eating and drinking”, and Paul’s words exhort us
to be “sober” and not “drunken.”
All three of the passages show that the time referred to by the term
THAT DAY is the end of the age. Matthew and Luke both use the
expression “heaven and earth shall pass away” in this connection,
while Paul speaks of it as the time when “sudden destruction” shall
fall upon the wicked. Each passage indicates that those who believe
will escape this destruction. Luke’s account speaks of praying to
“escape” these things, Matthew’s account likens it to the days when
Noah escaped the destruction of the flood, and Paul says the wicked
“shall not escape”, which implies that there will be an escape for
those who are not wicked.
So looking at Luke 21:36 again, we find that an escape is taught --
but the reference is to “THAT DAY” when “SUDDEN DESTRUCTION” shall
fall upon the world. There is nothing in this text about escaping
from a seven year tribulation period by means of a secret rapture
before that period.
Those who are truly devoted to Christ shall escape all these things
-- the neglect, the over indulgence in eating and drinking -- and
“having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2
Peter 1:4), here and now, they shall also escape that fiery sudden
destruction which shall bring an end to this age.
Notes
- Scofield Reference Bible, note 1, p. 1348.
- note 2, p. 1334
- De Haan, 35 Simple Studies on the Major Themes in
Revelation, p.61.
5. Will Christ
Return “At Any Moment”?
Did the early Christians believe that the rapture could occur at any
moment? Or did they believe that there were certain things that
would be fulfilled first?
We believe there is conclusive proof in the New Testament that the
early church did NOT hold the “any moment” teaching. Jesus pointed
out that no man knows the time of his return and that we should live
a life of watchfulness and obedience at all times (Mt. 24:36, 42-51,
etc.). However, Jesus himself taught that certain definite things
would happen first.
When Jesus told his disciples of the Second Coming, he was still
with them in person. It is evident that the ascension had to precede
the return. And before his ascension, of course, Calvary had to have
its fulfillment. Jesus likened his Second Coming to lightning and
said: “But first must he suffer many things, and be rejected of this
generation” (Lk. 17:2 5).
Jesus told his disciples that after his ascension, he would send the
Holy Spirit. They would be endued with spiritual power to be
witnesses unto him (Acts 1:8). These things were to take place
before Christ would come again. Thus, prior to Pentecost, we see the
disciples awaiting, not the coming of Christ (in his Second Advent),
but the coming of the Holy Spirit -- even as Jesus had promised.
Then being filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, the disciples
were to go into all the world and teach all nations (Mt. 28:19, 20;
Mk. 16:15; Acts 1:8). Time had to be allowed for travel, preaching,
baptizing, instructing converts, etc. Surely Christ was not going to
return before they would even have time to get properly started on
what he had commissioned them to do!
Jesus predicted the destruction of Jerusalem and told his disciples:
“When ye see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the
desolation thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Judea flee to
the mountains” (Lk. 20:21). At the Second Coming, there will be no
need for Christians to flee into the mountains, for they shall be
caught up to meet the Lord in the air The destruction of Jerusalem,
then, was to be an event which would take place before the Second
Coming of Christ. Living on this side of the fulfillment, we know
that Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 A. D.
Jesus also explained that Peter would grow old and die -- BEFORE the
Second Coming! In speaking to Peter, Jesus said: “When thou shalt be
old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird
thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. This spake he,
signifying by what death he would glorify God” (John 21:18,19; see
also 2 Peter 1:14). According to this, though the time of the Second
Coming was unknown, it was definitely implied that it would not take
place before Peter’s death.
Then Peter asked a question about John. He wondered if John would
live to see the day of Christ’s return. Jesus replied: “If I will
that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.
Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple
[John] should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not
die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to
thee?” (John 21:20-23).
Concerning John, Jesus simply did not reveal whether he would or
would not live until the Second Coming -- though a rumor spread that
he would live to see that day. But concerning Peter, it was
definitely stated that he would grow old and die -- and that he
would not live to see the Second Coming of Christ.
We believe the early Christians lived in an expectation and hope of
the Second Coming; for, whether alive at that time, or because of
the resurrection, they knew they would all ultimately share in the
glory of that day! But they did not believe in the any moment
theory; they knew certain things would happen first.
Even more positive evidence of this fact is found in Paul’s writing
to the Thessalonians. In his first epistle he had explained to them
about the resurrection and the catching up of believers to meet the
Lord in the air (1 Thess. 4:16, 17). Later, some confusion had
apparently developed in the minds of the people concerning this
glorious event, so Paul wrote his second epistle to them in which he
clarified the matter. In his remarks, he clearly rejected the
any-moment theory.
“Now we beseech you, brethren, by [concerning] the coming of our
Lord Jesus Christ, and by [concerning] our gathering together unto
him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by
spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of
Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day
shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man
of sin be revealed, the son of perdition” (2 Thess. 2:1-3).
Here, then, is the mention of two things Christians would witness
BEFORE the day of Christ’s coming to gather believers unto himself.
There would be a falling away and the man of sin would be revealed.
Concerning these very things, the inspired apostle said: “Let no man
deceive you”! Let us beware, then, of a teaching which says the
church will be raptured to heaven BEFORE the man of sin is revealed,
for such is the EXACT OPPOSITE of what Paul taught!
According to Paul, the order of events would be: (1) a falling away,
(2) the man of sin would be revealed, and (3) the coming of Christ
and our gathering together unto him. It is plain. But according to
the any moment theory, instead of these events being in this order,
they would have to be 3, then 1, and then 2! That is, (3) the coming
of Christ and our gathering together unto him, (1) a falling away,
and (2) the man of sin revealed: 3,1,2, or perhaps 3, 2, 1, instead
of 1, 2, 3!
Bible students generally link the “man of sin” in one way or another
with the beast of Revelation 13. Dispensationalists claim that when
the “beast” takes over, the church will have already been raptured.
But this is not what the Bible says. According to the scriptures,
the beast would make war with the saints: “And it was given unto him
to make war with the SAINTS, and to overcome them . . .” (Rev.
13:7). The beast could not make war with the saints and overcome
them if they had all been taken to heaven before the beast comes to
power!
Paul knew that the man of sin would be destroyed by the brightness
of Christ’s coming (2 Thess. 1:7,8; 2:8); therefore he knew that the
man of sin would have to come to power BEFORE the Second Coming of
Christ.
Being “troubled” with “persecutions and tribulations”, the
Thessalonian believers wondered if the day of Christ was not right
“at hand” (2 Thess. 1-2). If Paul had believed in the any moment
theory, here was his perfect opportunity to encourage them with the
teaching that the day of Christ was possibly right at hand! He might
have said something like this: “Now we beseech you, brethren,
concerning the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering
together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, for nothing
needs to happen first. That day shall come before the falling away
and before the man of sin is revealed. Yes, our gathering together
unto him could happen at any moment!”
But to the contrary, this was NOT his answer. Instead, he explained
that the day of the Lord’s coming, the day of Christ, when they
would be “gathered” unto him, would NOT take place until there would
be a falling away first, and the man of sin would be revealed! This
is just the opposite of the any-moment theory.
There can be no mistake that the day of Christ refers to the
rapture, for it is used in reference to “our gathering together unto
him” (2 Thess. 2). Christians are “waiting” for the “day of the Lord
Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 1:8,9). It is “in the day of the Lord Jesus”
that they will be gathered and “rejoice” at seeing each other (2
Cor. 1:14). The “good work” begun in Christians must continue “until
the day of the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6). Paul exhorted the
Philippian believers to be “sincere and without offence” until “the
day of Christ” (verse 10) and mentioned that when he would see them
“in the day of Christ”, he would “rejoice”, knowing that his labour
had not been in vain (2:16). All of these verses plainly show that
the “day of Christ” is the time when believers are gathered to meet
Christ. And the same inspired apostle that wrote these things tells
us that “the day of Christ” will not come except first the “man of
sin be revealed” (2 Thess. 2:1-3).
This conclusion is so obvious that those who hold the any moment
teaching try to make the “day of Christ” (in 2 Thess. 2:2) refer to
something else! Scofield, for example, says that the authorised
version “has ‘day of Christ’, 2 Thess. 2:2, incorrectly, for ‘day of
the Lord’.”1 Another dispensational writer says that the
day of Christ according to the Greek is really “the day of the Lord”
in this passage.2 But a look at Strong’s Concordance
reveals that the word translated “Christ” in this verse is
“Christos” (number 5547 in Strong’s). This word is used over 500
times in the New Testament and is translated CHRIST! (The Greek word
that is translated “Lord” in the New Testament is a different word
altogether, number 2962 in Strong’s.) “Day of Christ”, then, is a
correct translation.
But what if it did say “the day of the Lord”? What difference would
this make? We use the expression “the coming of the Lord” when
referring to “the coming of Christ.” Why, then, should some try to
make the New Testament expression “the day of the Lord” mean
something different than “the day of Christ”?
The following terms are all used interchangeably in the New
Testament in reference to the Lord’s coming to gather believers:
“The day of Christ” (Phil. 1:10).
“The day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6).
“The day of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 1:8).
“The day of the Lord Jesus” (2 Cor. 1:14).
“The day of the Lord” (1 Thess. 5:2).
We think it is very inconsistent to try to make the last expression
mean a different “Lord” or a different time than the other terms
describe. The day of the Lord is the day of Christ. And according to
Paul, the “day of Christ” -- when believers will be gathered unto
him -- will not come until AFTER the man of sin has been revealed!
Notes
- Scofield Reference Bible, p. 1212.
- Chafer, The Coming and Reign of our Lord Jesus Christ, pp. 32,
60.
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(c) Ralph Woodrow. Copyrighted material used by permission of
the Ralph Woodrow Evangelistic Association, PO Box 21, Palm Springs,
CA 92263.
Website: www.ralphwoodrow.org